Ernest Beaux

Ernest Beaux (December 8, 1881, Moscow, Russia – 1961, Paris) was a perfumer best known for creating Chanel No. 5, perhaps the world's most famous perfume.

Early career

Beaux was a chemist by trade. He began his career in 1898 at A. Rallet and Company, starting as a lab assistant in the company's soap works. He returned to Moscow after completing military service in 1902, where he resumed his position with Rallet, this time in the perfumery, becoming a member of the board of directors by 1907.Fact|date=March 2008

His second perfume (the name of the first is unknown) was his first success: "Bouquet de Napoleon", an eau de cologne created to mark the centennial of the Battle of Borodino.Fact|date=March 2008

The outbreak of World War One found Beaux back in the military, first as an infantryman and later as a counterintelligence officer with the White Russian army after the war.Fact|date=March 2008

Return to Paris

Upon his return to France, Beaux resumed with experimentation with aldehydes, then-new organic compounds which could be manipulated into long-lasting, synthetic scents. [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,828055,00.html They've Got a Secret - TIME ] ] Experimentation in 1919 and 1920 led to the development of a number of aldehyde-based fragrances, among them the formulas which would later become Chanel No. 5 and Chanel No. 22.

Perfumer with Chanel

Beaux was introduced to Coco Chanel in 1920 by Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich, Chanel's lover at the time. Beaux was acquainted with the royal because his father had worked for the tsar. He had reportedly been working with Coty at the time and had several of works-in-progress. [Smith, Liz. "Fashion: On the scent of a legend," "The Times", September 1, 1987.]

Chanel requested samples of Beaux's work and he presented her with two numbered series of bottles, the first numbered one through five, the second twenty through twenty-four. Chanel, according to Beaux's own account, chose the fifth bottle as her favorite. Beaux asked what she would call the fragrance; Chanel replied, "Number Five." Reportedly, this was a result of her belief in superstitions. She was scheduled to show her collection on the fifth day of the fifth month. [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,858285-2,00.html King of Perfume - TIME ] ]

Controversies

Coty's Aimant, released the following year, was said to be a near-copy of No. 5. [Toomey, Philippa. "Shop Around," "The Times", Saturday, Nov 26, 1977; pg. 26; Issue 60171; col D.]

Later in her life, Chanel was of the opinion that the deal she and Beaux struck was a poor one. In 1947, she demanded an additional two percent of the business. [Toomey, Philippa. "Shop Around," "The Times", Saturday, Nov 26, 1977; pg. 26; Issue 60171; col D.] "Although she made a fortune on the perfume, throughout her lifetime she was convinced that the deal had been heavily weighted in favor of the perfumer and that she had been cheated out of a huge sum of money," ["Coco Chanel," "Business Leader Profiles for Students". Vol. 2. Gale Group, 2002.]

"Pepper and salt don't taste pleasantly when taken alone, but they enhance the taste of a dish," Beaux said in an 1953 interview with "Time". The article continued: "Beaux gives each essence the nose test because some scents will last after a week of exposure, while others, for some unknown reason, will last only a few hours. When he is creating a new perfume he does no sniffing, simply jots down a formula, claims he knows exactly what the final result will smell like. Says Beaux: 'It is like writing music. Each component has a definite tonal value ... I can compose a waltz or a funeral march.'" [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,858285-2,00.html King of Perfume - TIME ] ]

At the time of the interview, Beaux was not working on any new perfumes, according to the head of the Chanel fragrance house, Pierre Wertheimer.

Passing

Beaux died in his Paris apartment in 1961; it was said that the church in which his funeral was held was completely decorated in roses.Fact|date=March 2008

References

External links

* [http://www.perfumeprojects.com/museum/perfumers/ErnestBeaux.php Ernest Beaux biography at Perfumeprojects.com]