history
Hidden beneath its industrial base, Hoboken’s vast manufacturing tradition has left a huge mark on the American fashion world. Today, many appreciate the new cosmetics and glamour industries that blossomed in Hoboken, but few recognize the deeper history that defined the American beauty industry. It was here in Hoboken, for example, that Hazel Bishop invented the first “all-day” lipstick. And viewers watching Apple TV+’s latest hit show about Coco Chanel and Christian Dior are sure to be familiar with the city’s history. New look, You may have noticed a familiar name popping up: In the midst of World War II, Coco discovers scandalous news about her most famous perfume, Chanel No. 5: “It’s horrible… it’s made in Hoboken!” Read on to learn more about Hoboken’s connection to this iconic fragrance.
New Look TV Series
Apple TV+ New Look The series thrilled fashion lovers around the world by detailing the salacious and fascinating wartime tales of designers Christian Dior and Coco Chanel. Halfway through the series, in episode 5, a shocking revelation is made. Not that Christian has finally launched his own couture house, but that Coco has fled to Switzerland. It’s that her former business partner… Chanel No.5. No, the wartime bombshell was much more far-fetched: Chanel No. 5 was made in… (surprise!) Hoboken. Of course, the story is more complicated than that, so let’s back it up.
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Something seems fishy
For Coco Chanel, a designer who made her mark in the world of fashion, Chanel No. 5 was her first foray into the world of perfumery, and one that was a bit out of place for her. In 1924, she became the CEO of the prestigious perfume house, bourgeois This allowed Coco fragrances to rapidly gain popularity by leveraging Wertheimer’s vast knowledge and infrastructure in the perfume industry.
Forming a legal entity called Parfums Chanel in 1924, Coco agreed that the Wertheimers would own a 70% stake in the company and oversee production, marketing and distribution, while Coco would lend her name to it. Over the next few decades, as Chanel No. 5 grew in popularity and made huge profits, Coco chafed under the constraints of her previous contract and felt increasingly cheated.
When the Nazis invaded France and took power, Coco used the new tools of the anti-Semitic government against his Jewish partners, the Wertheimers, revealing his ruthlessness as a powerful but “complex” businessman – “complex,” of course, being a polite, modern way of describing a historical figure whose moral failings have proven utterly reprehensible and despicable today.
In essence, Koko attempted to exploit anti-Semitic Nazi laws and her status as an “Aryan” to claim ownership of the Wertheimer family assets. In a terrifying display of cognitive resentment, Koko petitioned the Nazi regime, denouncing “the prejudices I have suffered.” (Mazzeo, Tiller J. The Secrets of Chanel No. 5: A Fragrance BiographyNew York: HarperCollins, 2010, 152-3).
The Wertheimers, themselves shrewd businessmen, transferred their shares to their good friend, the Christian and Frenchman Felix Amit, who, after the end of Nazi rule, Parfum Chanel To our Jewish brothers.
In 1940, Coco’s attempted takeover forced the Wertheimers to flee France for New York, where they took frantic measures to maintain the supply chain, production and quality of their most lucrative cash cow – Chanel No. 5. This included finding a factory, and they set their sights on none other than… (drum roll)… Hoboken!
Different name, same rose scent: Chanel No. 5 in Hoboken
Arriving in New York as Jewish refugees, the Wertheimer brothers needed to find a way to make a living by producing their own perfumes. As luck would have it, their friend Arnold van Ameringen was dating an up-and-coming perfumer, Esther Lauter (who would later become known to the world as Estée Lauder). (Mazzeo, Tiller J. The Secrets of Chanel No. 5: A Fragrance Biography(New York: HarperCollins, 2010, 141). Perhaps it was her own Jewish heritage that motivated Estée to help the Wertheimer brothers, and she helped them find a factory in Hoboken to produce their perfumes.
The Wertheimer brothers were careful to source all of Chanel No. 5’s materials from France, which wasn’t easy as America and Nazi-occupied France were at war at the time.
When Coco found out, the Wertheimers maintained the quality of their product, but she exclaimed what became a famous quote: “This is awful… it was made in Hoboken!” (Mazzeo, Tiller J. The Secrets of Chanel No. 5: A Fragrance Biography(New York: HarperCollins, 2010, 167).
Try to pinpoint the location of the smell
As shrewd businessmen and astute advertisers, the Wertheimers recognized the prestige and value of French perfume in the global cosmetics market and concealed Chanel’s connection to Hoboken. The Hoboken production of Chanel No. 5 was so well concealed that today it is nearly impossible to pinpoint the exact location of the manufacturing plant. New Jersey industrial directories from World War II do not list any of the corporate entities that produced the perfume, Chanel & Co. or Bourgeois & Co. However, they may offer clues to the location of the mystery. Rationing during World War II hit the perfume and cosmetics industry especially hard, New Jersey Industry DirectoryBefore the war (1938), there were eight toiletry companies in Hoboken; after the war (1946), only two cosmetics factories remained. Shulton Company And that Lightfoot CompanyProbably one of these two companies Chanel The fragrance was discontinued in 1946, as the Wertheimer brothers and Coco only reconciled in 1947.
Photo courtesy of Hoboken Historical Museum
Although Lightfoot & Co. manufactured cosmetics at 1412-24 Park Avenue, they specialized in soap, so it is unlikely that they produced Chanel No. 5.
Photo courtesy of Hoboken Historical Museum
probably, Shulton Co., Ltd. They produced this perfume because they specialized in making perfumes such as: Old Spice. In 1946, Shulton employed 300 men and 700 women in its factory at 1500 Washington Street, now the Hudson Tea Building.
The greatest irony is that the Wertheimers were so secretive that there is absolutely no evidence that Chanel was ever made in a factory in Hoboken. The only reason the public knows that Chanel was made in Hoboken is because Coco was so furious that a biographer took notice, recording her famous remark, “That’s horrible…it was made in Hoboken!”
Unpleasant odors: their effects
After World War II, the Wertheimers were faced with a dilemma: on the one hand, they knew of Coco’s Nazi sympathies and collaboration, but on the other hand, they feared that a protracted legal battle would expose her Nazi affiliation, ruining her image and destroying the Wertheimers’ business and livelihood. In 1947, the two parties renegotiated their original 1924 agreement and resumed their business relationship. Coco was to receive wartime profits and 2% of worldwide sales of her eponymous perfume, an arrangement that made her one of the richest women in the world.
The Wertheimers and Hoboken are Smelling Roses
By turning the other cheek, the Wertheimer brothers ensured the lasting success of their company and their life’s work. Pierre continued making perfumes and became a famous racehorse owner, while Paul died shortly after World War II. Today, Pierre’s grandchildren continue to enjoy the fruits of the Wertheimer brothers’ labor. Alain and Gerard Wertheimer have a combined net worth of $96 billion and continue to control Chanel (https://www.businessinsider.com/wertheimer-family-chanel-fortune-gerard-alain-vineyards-thoroughbred-net-worth-2019-2).
Hoboken’s role in the story made it a savior for Jewish refugees displaced by the Nazis, allowing Jewish families to maintain their businesses, livelihoods, and dignity during a time when they were being stolen from them under the Nazi occupation.
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We are extremely grateful to John Beekman and James Cox for their assistance in identifying the location of the Hoboken perfume and cosmetics factories. John Beekman is head librarian of the New Jersey Room Historical Research Center, and James Cox manages special collections at the Hoboken Public Library.
