page_title: Richard Hudnut
section_title: Family
hierarchical_section_title: Richard Hudnut / Family
caption_attribution_description: English: Beauty Book by Richard Hudnut ca. 1915
context_page_description: Richard Alexander Hudnut was an American businessman recognized as the first American to achieve international success in cosmetics manufacturing. The company once maintained separate US and European headquarters on Fifth Avenue in New York City and on the Rue de la Paix in Paris, respectively.
  Although his fortune had been built around cosmetics and beauty products, he preferred to be known as a "perfumer".
context_section_description: Hudnut's father Alexander (1830–1900) was a pharmacist with a store at Broadway and Ann Street in New York City. His mother was Margaret (née Parker). The name Hudnut derives from Hodnet, Shropshire. After graduating from Princeton University, Richard Hudnut toured France and returned with the idea of introducing French-style perfumes and cosmetics to American women. In 1880 he registered his name as a trademark in both France and the United States.
  Hudnut began by transforming the family drugstore into an elegant showroom. The makeover was such that the shop now became a tourist attraction, and Hudnut's business flourished. In time, Hudnut's products became so widely known that he closed the retail store and focused on marketing his product lines through wholesale distributors.
  One of the keys to Hudnut's success was that he sold his less expensive fragrances "on approval". After the consumer paid with postage stamps or a money order, Hudnut shipped the perfume. If the customer wasn't satisfied, Hudnut refunded his money.
  Having made his fortune, Hudnut sold the business in 1916 and retired to France.
  The Richard Hudnut Corporation was acquired in 1916 by William R. Warner & Company, which became Warner-Lambert in 1955. In 2000, Warner-Lambert was purchased by Pfizer Corporation, now the world's largest pharmaceutical corporation.
caption: Beauty Book by Richard Hudnut
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