Why it belongs in ORBIS
British perfumery house founded in 1870 by William Penhaligon, a Jermyn Street barber who became Court Perfumer to Queen Victoria. Launched Hammam Bouquet in 1872; still trades under the same name today.
Penhaligon's traces to 1870, when William Henry Penhaligon, a Cornish-born barber who had worked at the Hammam Turkish baths on Jermyn Street, opened his own barbershop nearby in London's Mayfair. As was common practice for barbers of the era, he began formulating his own grooming products for clients, and in 1872 created his first fragrance, Hammam Bouquet, named for the baths where he'd trained. His clientele included politicians, Oscar Wilde, and reportedly the Shah of Persia, and he was eventually appointed Court Barber and Perfumer to Queen Victoria. In 1880 he went into partnership with his foreman to form Penhaligon's & Jeavons, and his son Walter later created Blenheim Bouquet for the Duke of Marlborough - a scent still in the current range. The house has since passed through several ownership changes and is now part of the Spanish beauty group Puig.