Max Factor

Max Factor is a famous line of beauty products made today by Coty. It all began in 1909 when a man named Maksymilian Faktorowicz started a company called Max Factor & Company. He wanted to create makeup that would help people look their best, especially for actors and actresses in movies.

The company became very well-known for its special movie makeup. For many years, it was owned by Max Factor’s family. Later, it grew into an international business. In 1991, a big company named Procter & Gamble bought Max Factor, and now it is part of Coty.

History

Max Factor was born Maksymilian Faktorowicz into a Jewish-Polish family in Congress Poland under the Russian Empire.

By the age of eight, Factor was working as an assistant to a dentist and pharmacist. At age nine, he became apprenticed to a wig maker and cosmetician in Łódź.

Later, he opened his own shop in Ryazan, selling hand-made rouges, creams, fragrances, and wigs. He became famous when a traveling theater group used his cosmetics to perform for Russian nobility. The nobility appointed him the official cosmetics expert for the royal family and the Imperial Russian Grand Opera. By 1904, worried about rising anti-Jewish persecution, he and his wife decided to move to America.

After moving to the United States in 1904, Factor settled in Los Angeles, seeing a chance to supply wigs and theatrical makeup to the growing film industry. He soon became the West Coast distributor for two leading theatrical makeup brands.

When films began to be made, regular stage makeup did not work well on screen. Factor experimented with new compounds to create makeup suitable for film. By 1914, he had perfected his first product, a "flexible greasepaint," making him an authority on film cosmetics.

For his early years, Factor personally applied makeup to actors and actresses, becoming known for his customized looks. He worked with many famous stars.

In 1918, Factor introduced his "Color Harmony" face powder, which came in many shades for consistent custom makeup. He created unique looks for actresses and specific shades for different actors.

In 1920, Factor began calling his products "make-up" instead of "cosmetics," following the term used by theater people.

In 1922, after a bad experience in Germany, Factor decided to sell his own brand of greasepaint in tube form instead of sticks. This new tube greasepaint was more hygienic and could be applied thinly and evenly, quickly becoming the leading brand.

By the 1920s, his sons Davis and Frank were heavily involved in the business. In 1925, the company received a big order to supply makeup for the movie Ben-Hur. For the 1926 film Mare Nostrum, Max and Frank Factor developed the first waterproof theatrical makeup.

In the 1930s, Factor helped develop a device called the "Beauty Micrometer" to measure face contours and detect flaws that might be noticeable on camera. A technician could then apply makeup to hide these problems.

After Max Factor's death in 1938, his son Frank took over and expanded the company. During World War II, they developed makeup for camouflaging faces. The company continued to grow, introducing new products like "Pan-Stik" makeup and fragrances.

In 1973, the company merged with Norton Simon. Over the years, it changed ownership several times. By 2010, Procter & Gamble stopped selling Max Factor in the United States but continued overseas. In 2015, Coty bought Max Factor from P&G and relaunched it in 2018.

Innovations

Max Factor created many important makeup products over the years. In 1914, they made the first makeup just for movies, a thinner cream that came in jars. In 1930, they invented lip gloss. They also developed special makeup for television in 1932 and created the first smear-proof lipstick in 1940, known for its lasting shape.

Later, in 1954, they introduced "Erace", the first product to hide imperfections. By 1971, they had made makeup that would stay on even in water. In 1988, they launched the world's first clear mascara, and in 2000, they created a lipstick that stayed on for 12 hours without smudging.