Fragrance house

Kiehl's

Kiehl’s began in 1851 as an apothecary in New York City. Its original shop stood at the corner of 13th Street and Third Avenue in the East Village, where pharmacist John Kiehl later purchased the business and operated it as Kiehl Pharmacy. In 1921, John Kiehl’s apprentice Irving Morse purchased the store, began formulating products under the Kiehl’s label, and expanded it into a full-service pharmacy. In 1961, Aaron Morse shifted the family business’s focus from pharmaceuticals toward cosmetics. Kiehl’s identity is rooted in apothecary practice, personalized customer service, product sampling, and providing ingredient information to customers. More than 103 of its products and artifacts were inducted into the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Museum’s Division of Medicine and Science. On April 18, 2000, L’Oréal announced its acquisition of Kiehl’s from the family-owned business; the brand was to operate as a separate Cosmair division. L’Oréal currently presents Kiehl’s as “Finest Apothecary Skincare.” Its fragrance legacy includes Original Musk Oil, identified as its first branded product and signature scent; the blend is believed to date to the 1920s and was reintroduced in 1963.