Estee Lauter Sec2

When Josephine was twenty she was interested in the beauty business but also was considering a career in acting. During her twenties she met Joseph Lauter and after a three-year courtship they were married in a formal Jewish ceremony. For the next several years Josephine started a family but did not lose her love for cosmetics. She would create her own products in her house and eventually put her home-based business in the New York telephone directory as Lauter Chemists.

In 1933 Josephine marketed goods in her apartment. Some of her sales come through the mail but the bulk of her income came from local Manhattan beauty Parlors. For the next several years most of her product were sold in beauty parlors. When Josephine sold her first products in New York beauty Parlors she changed the look and the name to Estee Lauter for a more feminine look to her products.
By the end of World War II, Josephine wanted to expand her business so her and her husband, Joe, went into business together. They opened an office in Manhattan, relying on savings and some finical help from her father. By 1946, the company, Estee Lauter Cosmetics was founded.
Josephine was very particular on where her products were being distributed. She only wanted them to be sold to women who may not have had an extensive experience with makeup so she focused on only premium department stores.