n nail polishes (Charles would test the products on his own nails), differentiating itself from the competition by the wide assortment of colors they offered to their clientele, which consisted of salons and what was theThe story of Charles Revson, founder of cosmetics giant Revlon, is truly one of ‘rags to riches’. By the time of his death, Revson – an entrepreneurial icon - had grown his tiny cosmetic store into a global cosmetics giant.

The son of a cigar maker, Charles Revson entered our world in 1906, in Montreal, Quebec. His moved to Manchester, New Hampshire when Charles was a boy.

Following completion of high school, he moved to Boston. He got a job as a dress salesman, and then worked in a firm selling cosmetics. At age 25 he quit that job, when he was refused a promotion, and determined that he would start his own cosmetics business. To do so, he brought his brother, Martin, as well as a cosmetics chemist, Charles Lachman, with him, and together they started Revlon Cosmetics in New York City.

The company was funded with a mere $300 and initially specialized in nail polishes (Charles would test the products on his own nails), differentiating itself from the competition by the wide assortment of colors they offered to their clientele, which consisted of salons and what was then

nt.

The son of a cigar maker, Charles Revson entered our world in 1906, in Montreal, Quebec. His moved to Manchester, New Hampshire when Charles was a boy.

Following completion of high school, he moved to Boston. He got a job as a dress salesman, and then worked in a firm selling cosmetics. At age 25 he quit that job, when he was refused a promotion, and determined that he would start his own cosmetics business. To do so, he brought his brother, Martin, as well as a cosmetics chemist, Charles Lachman, with him, and together they started Revlon Cosmetics in New York City.

The company was funded with a mere $300 and initially specialized in nail polishes (Charles would test the products on his own nails), differentiating itself from the competition by the wide assortment of colors they offered to their clientele, which consisted of salons and what was the

on. He got a job as a dress salesman, and then worked in a firm selling cosmetics. At age 25 he quit that job, when he was refused a promotion, and determined that he would start his own cosmetics business. To do so, he brought his brother, Martin, as well as a cosmetics chemist, Charles Lachman, with him, and together they started Revlon Cosmetics in New York City.

The company was funded with a mere $300 and initially specialized in nail polishes (Charles would test the products on his own nails), differentiating itself from the competition by the wide assortment of colors they offered to their clientele, which consisted of salons and what was the

rought his brother, Martin, as well as a cosmetics chemist, Charles Lachman, with him, and together they started Revlon Cosmetics in New York City.

The company was funded with a mere $300 and initially specialized in nail polishes (Charles would test the products on his own nails), differentiating itself from the competition by the wide assortment of colors they offered to their clientele, which consisted of salons and what was the

n nail polishes (Charles would test the products on his own nails), differentiating itself from the competition by the wide assortment of colors they offered to their clientele, which consisted of salons and what was then a new phenomenon, department stores. Using pigments rather than the usual dyes, the company offered the American woman a rich-looking nail enamel in a larger variety of shades than had ever before been possible. Many of the firm’s clients across the country were introduced to the Revlon products by Charles personally, who would travel the nation by railroad on marketing trips. From there they expanded the Revlon product line to include lipsticks that matched the colors of their nail polishes, and later introduced perfumes and other fragrances. And in a mere six years, Revlon became a multi-million dollar venture.

Using his tough and demanding business style and his intuitive understanding of his female market, Charles Revson then helped build Revlon into the biggest retail cosmetics company in America, with more than 3,500 products and with annual sales at the tim