Ernest Beaux Russian-French perfumer Date of Birth: 08.12.1881 Country: France

1. Biography of Ernest Beaux
2. Early Life and Family
3. Early Career
4. Commercial Success and World War I
5. Post-War Life and Collaboration with Coco Chanel

Biography of Ernest Beaux

Ernest Beaux was a Russian-French perfumer, best known as the creator of the legendary fragrance "Chanel No. 5," the most famous perfume in the world.

Early Life and Family

Ernest Beaux was born on December 8, 1881, in Moscow, Russia. He was the youngest son of Edouard Beaux, who worked at the perfume house "A. Rallet & Co." in Moscow. During that time, "A. Rallet & Co." was known as the most influential perfume house in Russia and a supplier to the imperial court. Ernest's great-grandfather, Jean-Joseph Beaux, was a soldier in Napoleon's army who was captured near Moscow and remained in Russia after his release. In the 1830s, Jean-Joseph became a member of a theater troupe performing at the Imperial Theater in Saint Petersburg.

Early Career

After completing his education in 1900, Ernest Beaux became an apprentice at the soap laboratory of "Rallet." In 1902, he served the mandatory two years in the French army before returning to Moscow to continue his studies in perfumery under the guidance of the technical director of the Rallet factory. In 1907, at the age of 26, Beaux was promoted to senior perfumer and became a member of the board of directors.

Commercial Success and World War I

In 1912, Beaux created the fragrance "Bouquet de Napoleon" in honor of the centennial anniversary of the Battle of Borodino, a turning point in the struggle against Napoleon. It became his first major commercial success. The following year, Beaux released the fragrance "Bouquet de Catherine" to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty, but it did not achieve the same level of success. When World War I broke out, Beaux, despite being born and raised in Russia, was called into the French army, where he served in the infantry and later in intelligence. He even worked as an interrogator in a camp on the Kola Peninsula in the Murmansk Oblast.

Post-War Life and Collaboration with Coco Chanel

After being released from military service in 1919, Beaux settled in Paris. He maintained connections with his colleagues from "Rallet" and continued to develop fragrances based on the "Bouquet de Catherine." These new fragrances were called "Rallet N°1." In 1920, Beaux met fashion designer Coco Chanel in Cannes and presented her with his previous and current creations. Chanel selected an aroma that was intended to be a Christmas gift for a hundred of her best clients and simply named it "N° 5." However, the demand for the perfume was so high that Chanel decided to officially release it for sale in her stores. In the spring of 1924, the perfume house "Parfums Chanel" was established, with Ernest Beaux as its chief perfumer. He created numerous popular and well-known fragrances during his tenure and retired in 1954. Henri Robert succeeded him as the chief perfumer of "Parfums Chanel." Ernest Beaux passed away in his Paris apartment on June 9, 1961. During his funeral, the church was completely adorned with roses in his honor.