Ch. 1 - Overview of Marketing (Brief History and Mission Statement)

The Benefesto

We believe in WHISTLING WHILE YOU WORK IT…and faking it ‘til you make it.We believe in FAST & FABULOUS BEAUTY solutions…and that glamour is GRABBING LIFE BY THE GIGGLES and not letting go. We believe if at first you don’t succeed, APPLY MORE LIPSTICK…that SEXY gets you everywhere…and if you can’t be good, BE GORGEOUS.

We believe LAUGHTER IS THE BEST COSMETIC!

Brief history

Benefit Cosmetics was founded in 1976 by twins Jean and Jane Ford. Initially founded as a beauty boutique, the shop specialized in quick-fix products for beauty dilemmas. The decision of having their own beauty boutique was merely based on a coin toss, heads for a casserole café and tails for beauty boutique. In 1976, Jean and Jane Ford opened up their small makeup shop called The Face Place, in San Francisco’s Mission District. Their first product was a blush and lip tint called “Rose tint” (now renamed "benetint"). Jean & Jane Ford originally created the rose flushed tint for an exotic dancer who was in need of a nipple tint. Benetint is most famously known by this story, but it has become popular for a much wider clientele. It remains the company's best-selling product, with 10 million bottles sold. The Face Place later moved to Kearny St. in downtown San Francisco in the 80’s, and with the move came the debut of the original lip-plumping product, lip plump.

In 1989, the catalog was developed. Next, Jean and Jane Ford focused on department store distribution, and soon after the original Face Place was renamed Benefit Cosmetics. In 1991 Benefit opened up in its first U.S. department store - Henri Bendel, in New York City. With significant success in the U.S., Benefit went international in 1997 with their expansion into Harrods in London. Soon after, the Benefit Cosmetics product website was launched.

LVMH acquired Benefit Cosmetics on September 14, 1999. In 2001, Benefit launched their first bath and boudoir line, Bathina. Benefit opened its first "Brow Bar" (a boutique specializing in brow shaping) in 2003, at Macy's Union Square, San Francisco.