Andrew Pears was an English man, born around 1770, who invented transparent
soap. He moved to
London in 1789 from his home in
Mevagissey, Cornwall, where he had trained as a barber.
He opened a barber's shop in the then-fashionable residential area of
Gerrard Street, Soho, and attracted the custom of many wealthy families. He noticed that the London upper classes cultivated a delicate white complexion whereas a tanned face was associated with the working class who toiled in the outdoors. Andrew Pears realised that there was a need for a gentle soap for these delicate complexions.
After much trial and error he found a way of removing the impurities and refining the base soap before adding the delicate perfume of garden flowers. His product was a high-quality soap, and had the additional benefit of being transparent. Soap refined in this way is transparent and makes longer-lasting bubbles. The transparency was the unique product plus that established the image of
Pears soap. His method of mellowing and ageing each long-lasting Pears Bar, for over two months, is still used today where natural oils and pure
glycerine are combined with the delicate fragrance of
rosemary,
cedar and
thyme.
In 1835, he took on a partner, his grandson Francis Pears, and they moved to new premises at 55 Wells Street, just off
Oxford Street.
Andrew Pears retired from business in 1838, leaving his grandson, Francis, to continue the business of the London-based firm of
A & F Pears
A, or a, is the first Letter (alphabet), letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name ...
. He died in 1845.
His great great grandson, Thomas Clinton Pears (1882–1912), was travelling First Class aboard
RMS ''Titanic'' on the ship's maiden voyage from England to New York in April, 1912 with his wife, Edith Ann (Wearne) Pears (1889–1956). Thomas was lost, while Edith was rescued.
References
1766 births
1845 deaths
Inventors from Cornwall
People from Mevagissey
Soaps
{{Cornwall-stub