Helena Rubinstein
The Woman who Invented Beauty
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- 5,49 €
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- 5,49 €
Publisher Description
Helena Rubinstein was born into a poor Polish family at the end of the nineteenth century; by the time of her death in 1965 she had built a cosmeti empire that spanned the world. When Rubinstein opened her first salon in Melbourne, her scientific approach to beauty was an instant sensation. Women just couldn't get enough of her innovative advice on skincare, and her beauty products were constantly sold out. Having conquered Australia, Rubinstein went on to open salons in Europe and America, at a time when women were barely seen in business, let alone running their own multinational companies. Dressed by Chanel and Yves St Laurent, painted by Salvador Dali and Picasso and mingling with Colette and Proust, Helena Rubinstein not only enjoyed unbelievable success, but was also instrumental in empowering and liberating women. Helena Rubinstein was a total original, and her legacy can still be seen today in the methods used to market and manufacture cosmeti. This is her amazing life story.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This engaging biography tells the story of Helena Rubinstein and her popular beauty brand, from her initial success in Australia (where she emigrated in 1902) to the international empire she left at her death in 1965. Rubinstein was among the first to popularize cosmetics for the average woman, and marketed not just her results but also the rigorous scientific testing that went into each product. Watching the brand bloom makes for a fascinating case study, but the true richness of the book comes from the vivid anecdotes of Rubinstein's personal life. Fitoussi doesn't hesitate to speculate about what must have been on her subject's mind when, for example, she returned to her childhood home in Poland after founding her business. The early romance of her marriage to Edward Titus reads like a novel, while their later fights and reconciliations are depicted with empathy for both sides. The lively prose brings life to Rubinstein's "impossible character," tyrannical and tender by turns, and appeals to readers' taste for scandal without turning its subject into a caricature. Photos.
