Horst M. Rechelbacher (1941 – February 15, 2014) was an Austrian American businessman who was the founder of the cosmetics company

Aveda Corporation Aveda Corporation ( ) is an American cosmetics company founded by Horst Rechelbacher, now owned by Estée Lauder Companies, and headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Aveda manufactures skin and body care, cosmetics, perfume (internally call ...

and Intelligent Nutrients. His interest in developing products without toxic chemicals launched the market for natural cosmetics in the United States.

Early life and career

Rechelbacher was born in

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Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

to an herbalist and shoe maker/designer, and was the youngest of three brothers. His family apartment overlooked a small salon across the street in central Klagenfurt. During his childhood, Rechelbacher had many opportunities to observe the daily activities of the salon which inspired him to choose a vocation or continue with a formal education in salon profession. At age fourteen, he embarked on a three-year apprenticeship in the beauty and salon industry. During his apprenticeship, he was a three-time winner of the Austrian Junior Championships. At seventeen, he moved to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and started work at an exclusive salon in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. In 1970, Rechelbacher went to Florida to participate in a number of different competitions. In 1978, he founded Aveda and began to expand the product line into hair, skin and body care, makeup, plant-based perfumes (aromatherapy) and lifestyle products. Following the

Exxon Valdez oil spill The ''Exxon Valdez'' oil spill occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24, 1989. ''Exxon Valdez'', an oil supertanker owned by Exxon Shipping Company bound for Long Beach, California struck Prince William Sound's Bligh Reef, west o ...

, Rechelbacher was the first to sign onto the Valdez Principles, now the

Ceres Ceres most commonly refers to: * Ceres (dwarf planet), the largest asteroid * Ceres (mythology), the Roman goddess of agriculture Ceres may also refer to: Places Brazil * Ceres, Goiás, Brazil * Ceres Microregion, in north-central Goiás ...

principles, joining corporate environmental responsibility with corporate bottom line. In 1992, along with his partner Kiran, he attended the

Earth Summit The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the Rio Conference or the Earth Summit (Portuguese: ECO92), was a major United Nations conference held in Rio de Janeiro from June 3 to June 14, 1992. Earth Su ...

, where three key agreements occurred: the Climate Change Convention, a precursor to the Kyoto Protocol, the

Convention on Biological Diversity The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), known informally as the Biodiversity Convention, is a multilateral treaty. The Convention has three main goals: the conservation of biological diversity (or biodiversity); the sustainable use of its ...

and an Intellectual Property Rights accord for indigenous peoples that included preventing actions that could be deemed culturally inappropriate and/or cause environmental destruction. Through this convention, Rechelbacher forged a relationship with the Brazilian Yawanawa tribe and began a project cultivating uruku for its pigment and replanting seedlings in deforested areas. Nearly two decades after Rechelbacher incorporated, he sold Aveda to the

Estee Lauder Companies Estee may refer to: * Estee Shiraz, American-Israeli entrepreneur, communication expert and mediator *Morris M. Estee (1833-1903), American Republican lawyer, politician, and judge from California *Estée Lauder (businesswoman) Estée Lauder ( ...

but remained a consultant until March 2003. In the years following the sale of Aveda, Horst established Intelligent Nutrients. IN is an organic, food-grade, non-toxic plant-based hair, skin, body, aroma and lifestyle company with the primary emphasis on using organically grown ingredients.

Projects

Rechelbacher was the founder and chairman of the Horst M. Rechelbacher Foundation, a philanthropic organization dedicated to social and environmental preservation projects that operate on a grass-roots level. He also owned HMR Galleries, an art and antiques business, and was involved in producing films including the 1999 film ''Hidden Medicine.

Personal life

Rechelbacher maintained residences in

Minneapolis, Minnesota 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 ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. As well as a private estate and a company retreat, the Osceola, Wisconsin, property serves as an organic farm cultivating flowers and plants while also operating a distillery for the IN products. The farm and home are solar powered. Rechelbacher was divorced with two children, a son Peter and a daughter Nicole. Nicole is a married mother of three, and former accessories and clothing designer for Aveda. Peter is married with a son, and provided expertise in finance, and was president of Intelligent Nutrients while at Aveda. Horst lived and worked with his long-time companion, wife, and former vice president of marketing and creative for Aveda, Kiran Stordalen. Rechelbacher died from complications of

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of t ...

on February 15, 2014, at the age of 72 at his home in

Osceola, Wisconsin Osceola is a village in Polk County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,568 at the 2010 census. Located mostly within the Town of Osceola, the village sits on the border with Minnesota, separated by the St. Croix River. It is along ...

Books

* ''Rejuvenation: a wellness guide for women and men''. Published 1987, Harper & Row. () * ''Aveda Rituals: a daily guide to natural health and beauty''. Published 1999, Henry Holt. () * ''Minding Your Business: Profits that Restore The Planet''. Published 2008, Earth Aware Editions. ()
''Alivelihood: The Art of Sustainable Success''.
Published 2006, HMR Publishing. ()

References

External links