Aveda Corporation ( ) is an American cosmetics company founded by
Horst Rechelbacher, now owned by
Estée Lauder Companies, and headquartered in
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
, Minnesota. Aveda manufactures skin and body care,
cosmetics
Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protect ...
,
perfume
Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Th ...
(internally called "pure-fume"), hair color, and hair care products, and trains students in
cosmetology
Cosmetology (from Greek , ''kosmētikos'', "beautifying"; and , '' -logia'') is the study and application of beauty treatment. Branches of specialty include hairstyling, skin care, cosmetics, manicures/ pedicures, non-permanent hair removal such ...
, massage, and esthiology at the Aveda Institutes in Minneapolis,
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
,
Des Moines,
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
,
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
Calgary,
Orlando
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...
,
Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
,
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, and many other cities.
History
Aveda was founded by
Horst Rechelbacher in 1978.
In 1970, Horst, on a trip to India, was introduced to the science of
Ayurveda
Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population rep ...
(the Hindu traditional holistic system of medicine and surgery from India), and suddenly his vision for his company was born. Horst formulated the first product, a
clove shampoo, in his kitchen sink with help from Ayurvedic doctors - Vinod and Kusum Upadhyay. Today Aveda is part of
Estée Lauder Companies Inc., based in New York. Rechelbacher sold Aveda to Estée Lauder Companies, Inc., in 1997 for $300 million, although Aveda continues to be run as a semi-autonomous entity. Upon selling the product to Estee Lauder Companies Inc., Horst also sold off the chain of salons to his successor, David Wagner. The salons formally known as Horst and Friends was renamed Juut Salonspa.
In 2004, Aveda was awarded the prestigious Corporate Achievement Award at the
Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.
Aveda was one of the first beauty companies to endorse a set of principles designed to encourage greater environmental responsibility in business, known as The Ceres Principles (originally named The Valdez Principles).
According to the company's website, "Aveda" is
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
for "all knowledge". "Aveda" written phonetically as "अवेद", translates to "non-vedic" (or
म्लेच्छ).
Controversy
In 2009, Aveda (as a subsidiary of Estée Lauder Companies Inc.) was included by the
BDS campaign as one of the "Top Ten Brands to Boycott This Christmas" because "This company’s chairman
Ronald Lauder
Ronald (Ron) Steven Lauder (born February 26, 1944) is an American businessman, billionaire, philanthropist, art collector, and political activist. He is the president of the World Jewish Congress since 2007. He and his brother, Leonard Lauder, ...
is also the chairman of the
Jewish National Fund..."
In 2011 Aveda was slammed at Park City, Utah, during the Evolution of Women in Social Media conference, also known as
evo'11, for announcing their no-payment policy for bloggers reviewing their products.
Aveda was also criticized for using the brand name "Indigenous", as a denigration of indigenous peoples. They have since renamed the product line.
Environment
Through a partnership with Native Energy, Aveda has helped fund wind turbines. Aveda claims that it purchases enough wind energy to power its primary manufacturing facility. The company "sends sustainability surveys to publications to help decide where to place its ads".
[Story, Louise. ]
References
Further reading
The New York Times, August 27, 2000 – Taking the Sweet Smell of Success To a New Level of Literalness
External links
*
{{Estée Lauder Companies , state=expanded
Blaine, Minnesota
Cosmetics companies of the United States
Manufacturing companies based in Minnesota
Manufacturing companies established in 1978
1978 establishments in Minnesota
Estée Lauder Companies
Hair care products