Bourjois

Bourjois is a historic French cosmetics brand whose origins lie in the theatrical beauty trade of nineteenth-century Paris. Joseph-Albert Ponsin developed complexion products for actors and actresses who needed an alternative to the heavy, greasy stage makeup then commonly used in theater. He began preparing makeup and perfumes for performers around 1862 and formally launched the business in 1863. The company initially served theater and boulevard productions, but its products later moved into the broader consumer market. A major early turning point came in 1868, when Alexandre-Napoleon Bourjois, who had become a partner, assumed responsibility for Ponsin's activity. The Bourjois name became associated with the business, and the company broadened its appeal beyond professional performers. In 1879, the introduction of Java Rice Powder helped make Bourjois a mass-market beauty name. The powder was promoted as a product that could lighten the appearance of the skin and leave it with a velvety finish, extending the brand's reach to women in France and international markets. Bourjois developed a broad portfolio spanning face makeup, color cosmetics, perfume, and skincare. Its best-known makeup heritage includes compact or round-pot blushes, complexion products, lip color, and eye makeup. Fragrance has also been central to the brand's identity. Bourjois introduced its first perfume, Mon Parfum, in 1924, with Ernest Beaux involved in its creation. In 1928, the company launched Soir de Paris, known in the United States as Evening in Paris. The fragrance's distinctive blue presentation and international popularity made it one of the brand's defining products, particularly during the period surrounding the Second World War. The brand also participated in changing ideas about women's identity and cosmetics. During the 1930s, Bourjois promoted makeup as an expression of personal pleasure and personality rather than solely as a theatrical or corrective tool. A 1936 campaign supported women's right to vote, linking the brand to contemporary debates about women's independence and citizenship in France. Ownership remained connected with the Wertheimer family for much of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Pierre Wertheimer and his brother Paul took over the company's directorship in 1917, and the family later became associated with the Chanel group. In April 2015, Coty acquired Bourjois from the Wertheimer brothers for approximately US$239 million, according to contemporary reference material. Under Coty, Bourjois has been positioned as an internationally distributed beauty brand combining French visual codes with relatively accessible color cosmetics and fragrance. Reference material describes the brand as being present in approximately 26,000 points of sale across more than 80 countries as of 2015. Its product identity remains rooted in Parisian presentation, practical everyday makeup, and a long history of cosmetic innovation.

Bourjois emerged from the theatrical culture of nineteenth-century Paris. Around 1862, actor Joseph-Albert Ponsin created a complexion product intended for artists, actors, and actresses. The preparation was designed to replace the heavy, greasy stage makeup then used by theater performers. In 1863, Ponsin established a business preparing makeup and perfume for theatrical professionals. The business changed direction in 1868 when Alexandre-Napoleon Bourjois, a partner, was entrusted with Ponsin's entire activity. The Bourjois name subsequently became the identity of the company. Although theatrical users remained important to the brand's origins, the company soon recognized the potential of selling beauty products to a wider female audience. Java Rice Powder, introduced in 1879, was especially important in this transition. It was presented as a complexion powder that could lighten the appearance of the skin and produce a soft, velvety finish. The product helped Bourjois move toward mass distribution in France and abroad. In 1917, Pierre and Paul Wertheimer assumed the company's directorship. The Wertheimer family retained ownership and control of Bourjois for nearly a century, creating a long corporate connection between the brand and a family later associated with the Chanel group. During this period, Bourjois developed a wider range of powders, makeup, perfumes, gift boxes, and cosmetic kits. Fragrance became a major part of the company's history. In 1924, Bourjois released Mon Parfum, created with the participation of Ernest Beaux, the perfumer known for his work on Chanel No. 5. Four years later, the company introduced Soir de Paris. The fragrance was sold in the United States under the name Evening in Paris and became particularly successful there. Its blue bottle and strong international recognition made it one of Bourjois's most enduring historical products. It was also widely associated with the wartime and postwar fragrance market and remains of interest to collectors. Bourjois's marketing increasingly reflected changing social ideas in the early twentieth century. In 1936, the company promoted cosmetics as a form of personal pleasure and self-expression, rather than presenting makeup only as a tool for performance or concealment. It also ran a campaign supporting women's right to vote at a time when the issue was still being debated in the French Parliament. This connected the brand's commercial communication with broader discussions of women's independence. The company's perfumery tradition continued through individual creators. Constantin Weriguine joined Bourjois in 1938 and later created fragrances including Mais Oui, Ramage, and Glamour. By 1960, Bourjois offered an assortment of perfumes, gift boxes, makeup products, and kits, illustrating the shift from a specialist theatrical supplier to a diversified consumer beauty company. In the modern era, Bourjois became known internationally for accessible color cosmetics, especially blush, foundation, lipstick, and eye makeup, while continuing to sell fragrance and skincare. Reference material describes distribution through approximately 26,000 points of sale in more than 80 countries as of 2015. In April 2015, Coty acquired Bourjois from the Wertheimer brothers for approximately US$239 million. The acquisition placed the historic French brand within Coty's international beauty portfolio. Bourjois's enduring identity rests on its French origin, colorful packaging, theatrical beginnings, signature complexion products, and ability to translate Parisian beauty codes into products for a broad consumer market.

1. 2015Coty acquires Bourjois

   Coty purchases Bourjois from the Wertheimer brothers for approximately US$239 million, according to reference material.

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2. 1960The portfolio includes perfumes, kits, and makeup

   Bourjois has developed a diversified assortment of perfumes, gift boxes, makeup products, and cosmetic kits.

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3. 1938Constantin Weriguine joins Bourjois

   Perfumer Constantin Weriguine joins the company and later creates several Bourjois fragrances.

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4. 1936The brand links makeup with women's independence

   Bourjois promotes cosmetics for personal pleasure and self-expression and supports women's right to vote in a contemporary campaign.

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5. 1928Soir de Paris becomes an international fragrance

   Bourjois introduces Soir de Paris, marketed in the United States as Evening in Paris.

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6. 1924Mon Parfum is introduced

   Bourjois launches its first perfume, created with the participation of perfumer Ernest Beaux.

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7. 1917The Wertheimer family takes over direction

   Pierre and Paul Wertheimer assume the company's directorship and their family retains ownership for nearly a century.

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8. 1879Java Rice Powder broadens the customer base

   The launch of Java Rice Powder helps the company expand from theatrical professionals to women and mass-market consumers internationally.

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9. 1868Alexandre-Napoleon Bourjois assumes control

   Partner Alexandre-Napoleon Bourjois is entrusted with Ponsin's full activity, after which the Bourjois name becomes associated with the company.

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10. 1863Bourjois's predecessor business is launched

    Ponsin launches a business preparing makeup and perfume for actors and actresses.

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11. 1862Ponsin develops theatrical complexion makeup

    Actor Joseph-Albert Ponsin creates a skin product for theater performers as an alternative to greasy stage makeup.

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Accessible or mid-market French beauty, combining Parisian style, color cosmetics, fragrance, and everyday usability.

• Java Rice PowderFace powder1879

  Introduced in 1879, Java Rice Powder was a complexion powder intended to create a lighter-looking, velvety finish. Its importance was historical as well as commercial: it helped Bourjois move from its theatrical origins into the broader women's beauty market and supported the brand's international mass-market expansion.

• Little Round Pot BlushBlush

  The Little Round Pot format is one of Bourjois's signature makeup lines and is closely associated with the brand's long complexion and color-cosmetics heritage. The compact presentation is designed for portable everyday application and reflects Bourjois's emphasis on accessible, colorful French makeup.

• Healthy Mix FoundationFoundation

  Healthy Mix Foundation is a Bourjois complexion product intended to provide an even, natural-looking base for everyday makeup. It represents the brand's modern extension of its historical focus on powders, complexion products, and practical consumer cosmetics.

• Soir de ParisFragrance1928

  Launched in 1928, Soir de Paris became Bourjois's most famous perfume. In the United States it was sold as Evening in Paris. Its blue bottle, strong American reception, and wartime popularity made it a defining part of Bourjois's fragrance history and a collectible vintage perfume.

• Mon ParfumFragrance1924

  Mon Parfum was introduced in 1924 as Bourjois's first perfume. Its creation involved Ernest Beaux, a perfumer also known for creating Chanel No. 5, marking an important step in Bourjois's development as a fragrance house as well as a makeup company.

• 1936Women's voting-rights campaign

  France

  Bourjois supported women's right to vote through a campaign launched while the issue was still under discussion in the French Parliament. The brand also framed makeup as a means of personal pleasure and individual expression, aligning its communication with contemporary ideas about women's independence.

  Outcome. The campaign is documented as an example of Bourjois connecting beauty marketing with a wider social debate.

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• 2015Coty acquires BourjoisM&A

  Bourjois had remained under Wertheimer family ownership and direction for nearly a century.

  What changed. Coty acquired the brand from the Wertheimer brothers.

  Aftermath. Bourjois became part of Coty's international beauty portfolio, with reference material describing distribution in more than 80 countries as of 2015.

  Acquisition price. Approximately US$239 million (2015 acquisition)

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• 1928Launch Soir de ParisProduct launch

  Bourjois had begun developing a perfume business after introducing Mon Parfum in 1924.

  What changed. The company launched Soir de Paris, later marketed in the United States as Evening in Paris.

  Aftermath. The fragrance became one of Bourjois's most successful and recognizable products, particularly in the United States.

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• 1879Expand from theater into the mass beauty marketStrategy

  Bourjois had originated as a supplier of makeup and perfume for performers, but the company identified a wider consumer opportunity among women.

  What changed. The company introduced Java Rice Powder and broadened its target market beyond theatrical professionals.

  Aftermath. The move helped establish Bourjois as an international consumer beauty brand rather than a specialist stage-makeup supplier.

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• 2019Coty agrees to sell Bourjois to Unilever

  Coty announced an agreement to transfer Bourjois and selected other personal-care brands to Unilever. The transaction changed the brand’s corporate ownership after its period within Coty’s portfolio.

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• 2019Bourjois brand ownership changes in portfolio transaction

  The transfer of Bourjois to Unilever formed part of Coty’s broader effort to reshape its portfolio and focus resources on selected beauty categories and brands.

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• 2015Coty acquires Bourjois from the Wertheimer family

  Coty acquired the Bourjois beauty brand from the Wertheimer family in a transaction reported at approximately US$239 million.

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• 2015Coty acquires Bourjois from Chanel

  Coty announced the acquisition of Bourjois from Chanel, bringing the long-established French makeup brand into Coty’s consumer beauty portfolio.

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• 1928Bourjois launches Soir de Paris

  Bourjois introduced Soir de Paris, marketed as Evening in Paris in the United States, which became one of the company's most recognized fragrances.

  Product launchCampaign
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• 1879Bourjois expands beyond theater with Java Rice Powder

  The launch of Java Rice Powder helped move Bourjois from a professional theatrical customer base toward women and the broader mass beauty market.

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1. Bourjois
2. Bourjois official website
3. Coty agrees to sell Bourjois to Unilever
4. Bourjois brand ownership changes in portfolio transaction
5. Coty acquires Bourjois from Chanel