Description
Tangee Face Powder tin - Rachael Shade - vintage c. 1933. Tangee face powder was produced by the George W. Luft Company 277 Park Avenue, NY., NY 10172. Mr. Luft founded his company "Tangee" in 1920. Its first product was a "Tangee" Lipstick. It was the most popular brand of lipstick in America because it changed color on the wearer to blend in with their complexion. After great success in the cosmetic industry, the George W. Luft Company later branched out and made a Night Cream, a Day Cream, a Face Powder, a Cream Rouge, a Dry Compact Rouge, a Foundation, a Lip Pomade, and a Nail Polish line. .......................... The Tangee and George W. Luft names were like a pair of legs, they both depended upon the other in order to walk. Tangee was originally a cosmetic lipstick product, and after some quick success, it blossomed into a very successful line of cosmetic products that was created and promoted by pharmacist turned business entrepreneur, George W. Luft. George was born in Aurora, Illinois and graduated in 1894 from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy. After graduating, he was employed by a drug company. In 1896, he joined two other men and created a small business called the Mercur Drug Company in Mercur, Utah. Unfortunately for George, in 1902 a fire destroyed their small wooden building business as well as the entire town of Mercur. Once their business was rebuilt, George sold his interest in the business and moved to New York City where he took up a position with the American Druggists Syndicate (A.D.S.) The American Druggists Syndicate was a business that was set up to manufacture and sell proprietary medicines and drug sundries to its members of the American Druggists Syndicate. Such products would cost them less to purchase than it would be by buying other manufacturers products. By doing this, they were able to make a higher profit by making and selling their own products. This system is similar to today’s drugstores selling their own “in-house brand” of say cough syrup, instead a big well-known name brand that costs more to purchase. This created lower costs and higher profit$. By 1916, the syndicate had 25, 000 members, that were required to purchased one share of the A.D.S. stock each month for .00. Today, this would be equal to 2.89 each month or ,034.68 per year for one individual. For 25,000 members each year, this would be ,867,000 per year for 25,000 members …. Nice! In 1920, George W. Luft resigned from the A.D.S. business and established (with the aid of two investors,) the George W. Luft Company, Inc. The business was located at 181 Eight Street in. Long Island City, N.Y. (his office was located at 277 Park Avenue in New York City.) His new company was created in order to produce pharmaceuticals and cosmetics that were to be sold under the trade name of Mons. Doriot. One of the many products that were sold by George under the Mons. Doriot name was a Tangerine-colored lipstick. What made it such an interesting and special product was that it was made with a fluorescein dye. A lipstick product that was made with this type of dye, changed from a tangerine color to a red color once it was on the wearers skin. Young women loved this new magical trick. Due to its quick success, George later marketed it under the name Tangee. He did so to establish a brand name that would be easily recognizable when he manufactured other cosmetics under the same brand name. The Tangee lipstick quickly became very successful with young women due to their spreading the news of this unusual product that changed colors on ones lips. He claimed that the Tangee lipstick would was five times longer the usual lipsticks life. George was soon making and eventually offering several other products under the Tangee name, such as a Tangee Lipstick, Tangee Rouge, Tangee Mascara, Tangee Cake Makeup, Tangee Lip Pomade, Tangee Liquid Rouge, Tangee Nail polish, Tangee Night Cream, Tangee Day Cream, and a Tangee Face Powder. The “Tangee” name helped to promote and sell the other products. Not only was George a capable Pharmacist, more important he had become a marketing genus. This was due to his previous experience promoting the products that were made by the American Druggists Syndicate.George promoted his Tangee products in various newspaper and magazine ads. The following is the type of wording that he used to promote his Tangee Lipstick: Tangee Lipstick, the last and most important step to loveliness - color magic that changes from orange to blush-rose as it touches your lips - a Sorcerer’s wand that gives you Nature’s glow of youth - the final touch of glamour we all most need. And it’s waterproof and lasts all day!George W. Luft passed away 1939 during an operation and his daughter Constance managed the company until 1955 when she stepped down as the President of the company. In. 1971 the company was sold to A.R. Winarick, Inc., but by the 1980s the company abandoned the brand and it was later acquired by the Vermont Country Store in Vermont, which sells a new modern formulation of the Tangee Lipstick and a few other updated Tangee products. ... This is a nice addition to the vintage collector of Tangee lipsticks/products or for the collector of vintage lipsticks.
