V. Vivaudou Inc., was an American perfume manufacturer"Fined $5,000 As Smuggler", ''The New York Times'', November 2, 1920, p. 8 that operated in

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 ...

. V. Vivaudou Inc., was taken over by the

United Drug Company Rexall was a chain of American drugstores, and the name of their store-branded products. The stores, having roots in the federation of United Drug Stores starting in 1903, licensed the Rexall brand name to as many as 12,000 drug stores across th ...

in February 1916, for a price of $1,500,000. Among its perfume and cosmetics line, Mavis Talcum Vivaudou red tin was quite often part of the women's toiletries checklist. In August 1919 the United Drug Company sold V. Vivaudou Inc., to a syndicate of

men for $2,500,000. In 1920, it was considered one of the world's largest manufacturers of

toiletries Personal care or toiletries are consumer products used in personal hygiene, personal grooming or for beautification. Products Personal care includes products as diverse as cleansing pads, colognes, cotton swabs, cotton pads, deodorant, eye lin ...

. The business signed to carry out the sale and distribution of Alcorub on the

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, in September 1922. In January 1926 the firm approved a contract to acquire the Alfred H. Smith Company. In May 1930 V. Vivaudou Inc., was ordered by the

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction ov ...

to divest itself of capital stock in Parfumerie Melba, Inc., and the Alfred H. Smith Company. The FTC ruled that the companies were formerly competitors of V. Vivaudou Inc, and its acquisition of their stock constituted a monopoly. The order to divest was reversed by a

United States Court of Appeals United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

in November 1931. The court decided that the three companies' control of 6% of the

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cosmetics market did not constitute a monopoly.

Business history

Victor Vivaudou, the owner, was born in

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...

, France, on January 2, 1881. He travelled to the US with his mistress Rosa on the ''

Lusitania Lusitania (; ) was an ancient Iberian Roman province located where modern Portugal (south of the Douro river) and a portion of western Spain (the present Extremadura and the province of Salamanca) lie. It was named after the Lusitani or Lusita ...

'' on September 12, 1914, setting up V. Vivaudou Inc. in the Times building in 1915. He and three other investors also founded Meridian Motors, a Manhattan autos and appurtenances company, which was chartered in January 1917. A new company was incorporated with V. Vivaudou as its president in September 1919. An underwriting syndicate was formed headed by J. S. Bache & Co. and S. M. Schatzkin. The underwriting syndicate was dissolved in mid-September 1919. The corporation had an initial capital outlay of $12,000, and maintained its headquarters at the New York Times Building."New Incorporations", ''The New York Times'', June 1, 1917, p. 17 V. Vivaudou Inc. was listed on the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...

beginning on May 5, 1920. It issued 300,000 shares of capital stock. Company stockholders approved an increase of common stock from 340,000 to 500,000 shares on January 5, 1926. The shares were changed from $10 to no par value. They agreed to an issuance of 25,000 shares of 7 per cent preferred stock with $100 par value."Vivaudou, Inc., Adds Common Stock", ''The New York Times'', January 6, 1926, p. 40 In November 1920 V. Vivaudou, Inc., reduced its dividend from .50 to .25 per share to conserve cash, in order to meet expansion in the

and

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. It reported earnings of $288,430 for the quarter ending on October 31, 1920. The sum translated to $4 per share prior to accounting for taxes. Victor Vivaudou pleaded guilty to smuggling before a United States federal judge in New York City, on November 1, 1920. Vivaudou and Rosa failed to declare a $10,000 necklace and a $500 diamond ring, which they purchased in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, in March 1920. Vivaudou was fined $5,000. In November 1921 the corporation reported a decline in earnings. Its gross profit of $1,153,185 was below that of the previous year's $2,031,861. Gross sales amounted to $4,100,124. V. Vivaudou, Inc., announced a 60% increase in sales in the first quarter of 1922. In August 1922 the firm stated that it had paid off the last of its bank loans and was debt free. Net profit for 1922 was $592,947, and approximately $770,000 for the first ten months of 1923. By mid 1924 V. Vivadou Inc., reported a sharp decline in profits, largely due to losses incurred by its

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

subsidiaries. Victor Vivaudou was ousted as president of V. Vivaudou Inc., by Jules Bache and David Schulte following disputes over conspiracy and fraudulent misrepresentation.

Vadsco subsidiary

By 1943 V. Vivaudou of

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and

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was a subsidiary of Vadsco Sales Corporation. Vadsco expanded during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

through the growth of Kny-Scheerer, a subsidiary which manufactured surgical instruments. Vadsco subsidiaries also produced perfumes,

talc Talc, or talcum, is a Clay minerals, clay mineral, composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. Talc in powdered form, often combined with corn starch, is used as baby powder. This mineral is used as a thi ...

um and other products."Purely Gossip", ''The Wall Street Journal'', January 30, 1943, p. 11

References

V. Vivaudou Inc. V. Vivaudou Inc. V. Vivaudou, Inc.