Pierre-François Lubin is the founder of modern perfumery. Born in 1774, he lived through one of the most turbulent periods in French history, as the Ancien Régime gave way to the Industrial Revolution. It happened that Lubin’s parents lived near the Parisian workshop of renowned perfumer Jean-Louis Fargeon; so in 1784, it was he who initiated the ten-year-old Pierre-François in the art of perfumery. Under Fargeon, Lubin gradually came to be entrusted with the beauty recipes for the French Royal Court.
After the revolution, Lubin opened his boutique, in 1798. Its name, “Au Bouquet de Roses”, was a discrete tribute to the Queen, who had by then met with her tragic fate. The creations of the young perfumer were appreciated by the first dandies who emerged after the turmoil of the French Revolution. Known as Les Incroyables or the Incredibles, while their beautiful, extravagant companions were referred to as Les Merveilleuses or the Marvelous, they were the first trendsetters. Their extravagant way of life soon became the symbol of a new Parisian savoir-vivre.
In 1844, the House of Lubin came into the hands of Felix PROT. He had trained under Lubin and remained close to the founding father, as Lubin’s spiritual heir. He started the internationalization process of the House and also constructed Europe’s first modern perfume factory in Cannes, on the Côte d’Azur, which opened its doors in 1873.
The House’s greatest success, however, was in the United States. From the mid-19th century onwards, the USA represented a new Eldorado. Lubin’s expansion into the USA had begun in the late 1830’s when the company’s first American representative, Theo Studley, was appointed in New York. Lubin also set up local premises in New Orleans and St. Louis and became a favorite of local aristocratic families, particularly in the Old South.
