History

Jeanne-Marie Lanvin (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ maʁi lɑ̃vɛ̃]; 1 January 1867, Paris – 6 July 1946, Paris) was a French fashion designer and the founder of the Lanvin fashion house.

One of the most influential designers of the 1920's and 1930's, Jeanne Lanvin's skillful use of intricate trimmings, virtuoso embroideries and beaded decorations in clear, light, floral colors became a Lanvin trademark. When Lanvin died in 1946, ownership of the firm was naturally ceded to the designer's daughter, Marguerite di Pietro.

The eldest of 11 children, she became an apprentice milliner at Madame Félix in Paris at the age of 16 and trained at dressmaker Talbot before becoming a milliner on the rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in 1889.

In 1895, Lanvin married her first husband, Count Emilio di Pietro, an Italian nobleman and two years later gave birth to a daughter, Marguerite (also known as Marie-Blanche) (1897–1958). The couple's only child, Marguerite di Pietro became an opera singer, married the Count Jean de Polignac (1888–1943), and was, on the death of her mother, the director of the Lanvin fashion house. Lanvin and di Pietro divorced in 1903. Lanvin's second husband, whom she married in 1907, was Xavier Melet, a journalist at the newspaper Les Temps and later the French consul in Manchester, England.

In 1909, Lanvin joined the Syndicat de la Couture, which marked her formal status as a couturière. Lanvin made such beautiful clothes for her daughter that they began to attract the attention of a number of wealthy people who requested copies for their own children. Soon, Lanvin was making dresses for their mothers, and some of the most famous names in Europe were included in the clientele of her new boutique on the rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris. She became known for her mother-and-daughter outfits and exquisite robes de style, as well as her modern and global approach to the fashion industry.

From 1923, the Lanvin empire included a dye factory in Nanterre. In the 1920's, Lanvin opened shops devoted to home décor, menswear, furs and lingerie.

One of the most influential designers of the 1920's and 1930's, Jeanne Lanvin's skillful use of intricate trimmings, virtuoso embroideries and beaded decorations in clear, light, floral colors became a Lanvin trademark. Lanvin excelled at creating the "robe de style" dresses in the 1920s. The robe de style describes a style of dress as an alternative to the straight-cut chemise dress. The style was characterized by its full skirts. The bodice could be fitted, or straight-cut in the chemise manner, with a dropped waist, but it was the full skirt that denoted the robe de style. Sometimes the fullness was supported with petticoats, panniers, or hoops. The robe de style became a signature design of Jeanne Lanvin. Other couture houses known for their versions of the robe de style included Boué Soeurs, Callot Soeurs, Doeuillet and Lucile.

However, her most significant expansion was the creation of Lanvin Parfums SA in 1924. Please scroll down further for more info on the fragrances.

In addition, Lanvin commissioned Rateau to decorate her apartment at 16 rue Barbet-de-Jouy, Paris, and two country houses. (The living room, boudoir and bathroom of the apartment was reassembled in 1985 in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris.) For this domicile, Rateau designed some remarkable 1920–22 furniture in bronze.

During 1921–22, Rateau was manager of Lanvin-Sport and he also designed the Lanvin spherical La Boule perfume flacon for Arpège (originally produced by the Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres). To this day, Arpège perfume containers are imprinted with Paul Iribe's gold image (rendered in 1907) of Lanvin and her daughter Marguerite. Rateau also designed Lanvin’s fashion house and managed Lanvin-Décoration (an interior-design department, established 1920) in the main store on the rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.

Awards:

• Chevalier de l'Order de la Légion d'Honneur, to Jeanne Lanvin, 1926
• Officier de l'Order de la Légion d'Honneur, to Jeanne Lanvin, 1938

When Lanvin died in 1946, ownership of the firm was ceded to the designer's daughter, who had shared management of the firm from 1942 with a cousin and then a fashion-industry expert. Because Marie-Blanche de Polignac was childless when she died in 1958, the ownership of the House of Lanvin went to a cousin, Yves Lanvin. (See Directors and Officers Since Jeanne Lanvin below.)

From mid-1960's through to the takeover by L'Oreal, Lanvin was run by Bernard Lanvin. The export department was in the original factory in Nanterre where all the perfumes were made and bottled. The administrative Head Office was in Paris at 3, Rue de Tilsitt.

In 1964 Charles of the Ritz merged with the Lanvin group. It was from then on known as           Lanvin-Charles of the Ritz.  In 1971, the company was sold to Squibb and Squib sold off Lanvin in 1978 and renamed the brand Charles of the Ritz Group, Ltd.

In 1979 Lanvin bought its independence from Squibb USA and a major PR promotional tour was arranged by Paris in the United States in the same year.

Britain Midland Bank bought a stake in the company from the family in March 1989, and installed Léon Bressler to revamp the firm's faded image. However, in February 1990, Midland backed out and sold Lanvin to Orcofi, a French holding company led by the Vuitton family. From Orcofi, 50% of the House of Lanvin was acquired by L'Oréal in 1994, 66% in 1995 and 100% in 1996. Under L'Oréal's diverse umbrella, an array of CEOs who circulate within the French fashion industry have directed the company.

In August 2001, Lanvin, the oldest fashion house still in operation, was taken private again by investor group Harmonie S.A., headed by Mrs. Shaw-Lan Wang, a Taiwanese media magnate. And, October 2001, Alber Elbaz was appointed the Lanvin artistic director for all activities, including interiors. In 2006, he introduced new packaging for the fashion house, featuring a forget-me-not flower color, Lanvin's favorite shade which she purportedly saw in a Fra Angelico fresco (Suzy Menkes, 2005.) In 2006, Lucas Ossendrijver was appointed the head of the men's line, which debuted with great success, strengthening Lanvin's brand.

While enjoying a revitalized reputation in luxury, Lanvin received mainstream press in the United States in May 2009 when Michelle Obama was photographed wearing a popular line of Lanvin's sneakers made of suede with grosgrain ribbon laces and metallic pink toe caps while volunteering at a Washington, D.C. food bank. The sneakers were reportedly retailed at $540.

On December 4, 2009, Lanvin opened their first US boutique in Bal Harbour, Florida.

Directors and Officers Since Jeanne Lanvin:

• 1946–1950, Lanvin's daughter Marie-Blanche de Polignac, owner and director
• 1942–50, Marie-Blanche's cousin Jean Gaumont-Lanvin (Colombes, 1908–Versailles, 1988), director general
• 1950–1955, Daniel Gorin (Paris, 1891–Paris, 1972), director general
• 1959, Marie-Blanche's cousin Yves Lanvin, owner; Madame Yves Lanvin, president.
• 1989–1990, Léon Bressler, chairperson
• 1990–1993, Michel Pietrini, chairperson
• 1993–1995, Loïc Armand, chairperson
• 1995–2001, Gérald Asaria, chairperson
• 2001–2004, Jacques Lévy, director general

Designers Since Jeanne Lanvin:

• 1946–1958, Marie-Blanche de Polignac, director general and designer
• 1950–1963, Castillo (b. Antonio Canovas del Castillo del Rey, 1908– d. 1984), women's collections
• 1960–1980, Bernard Devaux, hats, scarves, haute couture; women's "Diffusions" line 1963–1980,
• 1964–1984, Jules-François Crahay (Liège, 1917–1988), haute couture collections and "Boutique de Luxe"
• 1972, Christian Benais, men's ready-to-wear collection
• 1976–1991, Patrick Lavoix, men's ready-to-wear collections
• 1981–1989, Maryll Lanvin, ready-to-wear, first haute couture in 1985 and women's "Boutique" collections
• 1989–1990, Robert Nelissen, women's ready-to-wear collections
• 1990–1992, Claude Montana, five haute-couture collections
• 1990–1992, Eric Bergère, women's ready-to-wear collections
• 1992–2001, Dominique Morlotti, women's and men's ready-to-wear collections
• 1996–1998, Ocimar Versolato, women's ready-to-wear collections
• 1998–2002, Cristina Ortiz, women's ready-to-wear collections
• From 2002, Alber Elbaz, artistic director of all creative activities
• From 2003, Martin Krutzki, designer of men's ready-to-wear
• 2005–present, Lucas Ossendrijver, Designer of men's ready-to-wear

Perfumes:

In 1924, when Jeanne Lanvin created Lanvin Parfums, SA at 4, Rond Point des Champs-Elysees, she was guided by the conviction that perfume was a vital part of her vision of fashion and life in general. It was a matter of style. Her experience as a milliner taught her the importance of accessories. Olfactory accessories are just another way to win over ladies’ hearts.

Parade, 1927:

"Here are two perfumeries: at Lanvin, the space is vast, around the perimeter of the room, a few display cases are placed in which the perfume bottles are displayed. The architecture is very simple, no unnecessary decoration; in the back, two large glass doors, while on the right a wrought iron grille conceals the elevator cage. We have achieved a promotion of the merchandise, as the directors of this firm certainly wanted. 

The Chéramy perfumery seems more intimate; the space is less vast; the staircase with its frosted glass and wrought iron banister breaks the monotony. On each side, on two counters and in display cases, perfume bottles, sprays and powder boxes are arranged. Basically, the cash counter has very small dimensions to leave as much space as possible for customers who are offered comfortable armchairs to allow them to make their choice in complete peace of mind."

She began her preparations well in advance, trying out some initial fragrances. Fashion designers of the early 1900s required the assistance of experienced perfume companies to blend their perfumes and to create and produce their presentations. Gabilla was one of the companies who specialized in assisting fashion designers, most notably Jeanne Lanvin. Gabilla had worked under condition of anonymity. The direct involvement of these two companies was evidenced in their choice of perfume names and bottle shapes.

Her first perfumer was a lady of Russian origin, Marie (Maria) Zède. To this day, many people were mystified about the person, this Marie Zède, the perfumer for Parfums Gabilla, then known to those in the fragrance industry as "Madame Zèd". Her origins and first name were an enigma, some people thought the name was perhaps an acronym or even a moniker given as an alias to encompass the fragrance creations made by an unknown perfumer or group of various perfumers. However, lucky for us, Octavian Coifan, from the defunct blog 1000fragrances "found an official paper from Lanvin from 1923. It is an order of some raw materials addressed to a supplier, and handwritten by.... Maria Zède. The address of the "lab" is 13, rue Castiglione."



Lanvin's brother Gabriel, a chemist, also helped Madame Zède with the creation of the Lanvin fragrances. The perfumes were produced at the Suresnes factory of Parfums Volnay founder, Rene Duval.

The best example of Gabilla’s influence over other designers would be for the perfume, My Sin. My Sin, first introduced by Gabilla in 1920. The round flacon, of black crystal and molded with stylized floral accented with gold enamel, was designed by Julien Viard and produced by Depinoix, was first used for the Gabilla scent Amour Americain in 1920. Interestingly, the Gabilla flacon was also produced in clear crystal, again accented in gilding and used for other Gabilla scents such as Minnie in 1920.

This beautiful perfume flacon and name had inspired Jeanne Lanvin to create her own version of My Sin, complete with a similar looking bottle by Armand Rateau in 1927. She launched this perfume as Mon Péché (My Sin) in France. In 1926, Jeanne Lanvin recalled that My Sin was created by a collaboration between Firmenich and Madame Maria Zede , a "nose", an employee of Gabilla Perfumerie.



According to the book Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things, author Charles Panati states that "capitalizing on the American desire for French perfumes, Jeanne Lanvin took her creation Mon Péché, which had failed in Paris, and in 1925 turned it into an immediate and resounding success in America under the name My Sin."

Other fragrances were offered under the Lanvin brand, many of these have been lost to time and are extremely sought after by collectors.

Irise, meaning iridescent, was her first scent and combined violets with irises, followed by the oriental Kara Djenoun, a name inspired by a trip to Egypt and the madness of a djinn. Le Sillon, referred to the wake of a ship. Niv Nal sounds exotic but is simply the name Lanvin spelled backwards. Lajéa was released in 1924 is the beginning of "La Jeanne", almost a truncated signature, and Géranium D'Espagne was later renamed as Spanish Geranium.
Chypre was a common perfume of the time, the floral Comme-Ci Comme-Ca, means "so-so", while J’en Raffole  means "I'm Mad About" which no doubt referred to Lanvin herself. While La Dogaresse, meaning "The Doge's Wife" or "The Dowager" may have been a play on her marriage to an Italian and her worldly travels. No fewer than fourteen fragrances had been launched by 1925. Où Fleurit L'Oranger, Cross Country and Apres Sport followed.

Completed in 1924 and launched in 1925, My Sin was Maria Zede’s final creation and her first resounding success, dominating markets in the USA in particular with its rich and surprising mix of aldehydes and floral, animal and woody scents.

A multitude of living olfactory emotions followed. The stakes were raised in 1925, with the arrival of a young perfumer named Andre Fraysse (then aged only 27) whose talent had been noted by many more olfactory delights.

Le Mercure, 1929:

"Madame Jeanne Lanvin, as we know, one of the greatest seamstresses in Paris, created perfumes, for which we will try to find a synthetic phrase. Here again if we have the gift of word associations which constitutes one of the writer's talents, the word "Lanvin" will call after it the word "divine". From then on, nothing could be easier than saying “Jeanne Lanvin, divine perfumes.” We will not say "Parfums Jeanne Lanvin", nor "Parfums Lanvin," because that would prevent the name Jeanne Lanvin from having its full effect. This name benefits in itself from the reputation already acquired by this house in haute couture: it must therefore appear alone, without the word Parfums, as a personal signature; and, to immediately indicate that it is a brand, we will put the name in quotation marks (or in italics)."

Fraysee said that "Natural perfumes, in contrast to synthetic perfumes, are a blend of exotic vegetable materials, taken from flowers, plants, roots and moss of various trees such as a chypre (cypress), and animal matter which comes from such completely different animals are spermaceti whale, the Tibetan mountain deer or the civet cat of Abyssinia."  The civet cat's secretions look like coal black grease, "Tiny drops of this give perfumes its characteristic warmth. Musk is another animal substance which give perfume warmth," explained Fraysee.

Ingredients used in the Lanvin perfumes were sourced from around the world. Ylang ylang from Madagascar, vetiver was extracted from the roots of a Javanese herb, sandalwood imported from Mysore, India, and the green skin of the bergamot fruit most commonly used in the blending of eau de colognes for centuries.

Fraysee said that "Much of the raw material comes from France. Grasse on the Cote d'Azur is the center of the production of plants and their essences. Actually, flower-growing has been the economic mainstay of the area for more than a century. There are 10,000 growers in the Grasse region alone."

In 1965, Fraysee stated that Lanvin was the world's leading buyer of jasmine. "We buy a ton a year which costs about $2.5 million. The amber seed from Guatemala costs about $2,000 a pound; the iris root from Italy must age for five years before it can be used. Musk costs $1,000 a pound. To these you have to add the major expense of advertising and publicity not to mention the years of research before these exotic blends are considered marketable. Ninety-nine percent of our efforts comes to nothing. It is a matter of luck."

The introduction of her signature, the fragrance Arpège, in 1927, inspired by the sound of her daughter Marguerite's practicing her scales on the piano. ("Arpège" is French for arpeggio.). The aldehydic Arpege, still sold today, has been called one of the best selling women's fragrances of all time, alongside the classics Chanel No. 5, Shalimar and Joy.

The floral woody Pétales Froissées (Crushed Petals) and L’Ame Perdue (Lost Soul) were introduced in 1928, the fruity chypre oriental Rumeur in 1934, the spicy floral Pretexte in 1937...and Scandal, which was hailed by perfume industry colossus Edmond Roudnitska as one of the greatest leather scents ever when it was launched in 1933. Crescendo was launched in 1958, but the name was trademarked in 1939 as the perfume reportedly took nearly 20 years to be perfected by Andre Fraysse.

By World War II, Lanvin was already one of the world’s leading perfumers.  

Ottawa Citizen, 1961:

“A new perfume launched by the French perfume and couture house of Lanvin took more than 20 years to perfect. It is called Crescendo and is described as a subtle and appealing magnolia essence. It follows five well known predecessors: My Sin, Arpege, Scandal, Pretexte and Rumeur. 

The firm of Lanvin purchases one-third of the world’s entire industrial production of jasmine and rose petals. Andre Fraysse, Lanvin’s head chemist and the man who created Crescendo as well as its predecessors, has been with the firm for 35 years. The secret formula of each perfume is known only to Fraysse and the perfume company’s president.  

Copies of the formulas are deposited in a sealed envelope in a bank vault. Each individual perfume contains a mixture of at least 50 different ingredients. When Fraysse dies, instructions for making the perfumes will be handed to his successor. 

Fraysse, a tall , distinguished, grey haired man, immaculate as a surgeon in his white smock, is known professionally as “The Nose.” 

He claims the ability to analyze and discern odors is usually a family characteristic. His father was a perfume expert in the House of Yardley, and his brother is also a perfume expert. Fraysse’s 15 year old son hopes to follow in the family’s footsteps.

 In 1925, the late madame Jeanne Lanvin, founder of the couture firm, engaged Fraysse, then an unknown, to create the first Lanvin perfume. The result was My Sin, followed by Arege two years later. Crescendo is the first new perfume to be launched by Lanvin since Pretexte in 1937. 

Fraysse goes to the source to buy his essential oils somewhat as a French wine taster attends the grape harvests each fall. Sandalwood comes from India, vanilla from Madagascar, certain rose essences from Bulgaria and other floral absolutes from Grasse in the south of France.”

 In 1974, when Bernard Lanvin bought back the Lanvin trademark in America, he immediately destroyed more than $3 million of US merchandise that he believed had cheapened his family name.

It was said that he had trashed Lanvin fragrances with what he determined was outdated packaging, then abolished the free-gift-with-purchase offers, and discontinued nearly all accessory items such as bath powder and cologne kits. He vowed that never again would he allow his fragrance firm to be run by the Americans. He found the American tradition of gifts-with-purchase especially offensive and gave an arrogant analogy, "When you go to a class hotel, do they give you an extra room? Or maybe a free bed out in the hall? Certainly not. The whole idea is an insult to the customer and a blight on the name of the firm."

He explained by saying "A French company should be run the French way. Before we reestablished ourselves in this country, I tell you things were really getting out of hand." He went into to say that he was horrified that most Americans did not know how to pronounce the name of the perfumes nor the Lanvin name itself,  scoffing in response, "Do you know that people actually thought there was a perfume called Ar-ped-gee by Lan-vin? The perfume is Arpege by Lanvin. (Ar-Pehj by Lah-va) And once again it belongs to my family. Now that I have control, I will never let it go again, I assure you. Lanvin will have the same image, same marketing, same pronunciation worldwide."

Lanvin had sold the US fragrance trademark in 1969 to LCR - a division of Charles of the Ritz. the trademark was then bought back in 1979 by Bernard Lanvin and was then wholly owned by Lanvin and distributed by Scannon, Inc. 

In 1979, Bernard Lanvin sought to restore the lustre of the Lanvin brand. He repackaged Arpege in its original, luxe black boule bottle with the hand painted gilded logo of Jeanne Lanvin and her daughter Marie-Blanche. The products were re-packaged with elegant black and gold motifs and the firm reintroduced the classic Lanvin Art Deco styled bottles. 

Since 2007, parfums Lanvin are owned by Inter Parfums, while the fashion division is led by designer Alber Elbaz.

Resources:

• Wikipedia
• Lanvin.com