Jacques Bogart

In 1975, Jacques Bogart S.A. was founded in France by Jacques Konckier, a menswear designer working under the name Jacques Bogart. In 1982 the company opened a subsidiary in the U.S. called Fragrance du Monde, and in 1983 it acquired the rights to Ted Lapidus from L'Oreal. Konckier scrapped and completely rebuilt the Ladipus brand, forming Creation de Ted Ladipus for women. In 1986 the company acquired the rights to another well-known brand name, Balenciaga, and began releasing fragrances under this name as well. Today, the companies primary revenue is split between the Bogart, Balenciaga, and Ladipus brand names, though it has accumulated several new names, including Facconable, Naf Naf, and Bugatti. It remains by and large a fragrance business, though it does market some ready-to-wear clothing and accessories, particularly through the Balenciaga name. A pioneer in the marketing of men's fragrance, men's grooming remains in primary focus, from fragrance to hair and body care.

In 1975, Jacques and his wife Regine used a meager $4,000 in capital to launch their first men's fragrance line, featuring a natural, leathery scent called Bogart. By the following year, the fragrance was being exported to 20 countries and by 1980 it was being exported to 60. After the moderate success of Bogart, Konckier found even greater success in 1980 with his next fragrance, One Man Show, a masculine, earthy scent featuring the spice of wood and tobacco. This was followed by several women's scents through the Ladipus brand in the mid-eighties, and in 1988 by Bogart's Furyo and the highly popular exotic scent of Rumba under the Balenciaga name. 1992s Witness featured a strong, sensual mixture of citrus, cinnamon spice, and patchouli, and a more exotic blend of fruit and spice highlighted the 1998 release of Force Majeure. The newest Bogart fragrance is Bogart pour Homme. Designed by French perfumer Maurice Roucel for Konckier, it balances elegant florals like rose and lily of the valley with a musky, masculine base of moss and patchouli.