“Wishing that this formula serves Pharmacists well…”
Omnium rerum principia parva sunt
Everything has a small beginning.Dear Colleagues; this week, I will tell the journey of the famous Kiehl’s stores, named after Pharmacist John Kiehl, who started his professional career in the 19th century as a small community pharmacist, opening in 1851 in New York, USA. As you read these lines, I wanted to see what we can achieve when we manage our pharmacies with principles while also striving to create and produce with our knowledge.
Starting his professional career in 1851, Kiehl began licensing and selling medicinal tonics and ointments he formulated from natural botanicals in Manhattan, New York.
The founding Kiehl family consistently maintained the standards they set when opening their pharmacy, which they championed and preserved over the years. They never compromised their values and product standards, driven by the core philosophies that sustained Kiehl’s for years and kept it authentic. They always provided their patients with high-quality Healthcare Consulting services with respect and expertise.
The year 1921:
Kiehl’s connection with the Morse family began before World War I, when a Russian Jewish family named Moskovitz immigrated to the United States and adopted the surname Morse. The family’s younger son, Irving, began working as an apprentice at Kiehl’s pharmacy. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I, and upon his return, graduated from the Columbia University College of Pharmacy, eventually purchasing Kiehl’s in 1921, where he had once worked as an apprentice. Moving away from the image of a classic old-fashioned apothecary, he transformed it into a modern pharmacy offering homeopathic remedies, herbal teas, and medicines, and producing tinctures, honeys, and Kiehl-branded products. By purchasing Kiehl’s, Irving Morse succeeded in further elevating the pharmacy’s quality of service.
1961:
Irving Morse’s son, Aaron Morse, born in 1923, spent his childhood alongside his father in the pharmacy. Therefore, Aaron was no stranger to the Kiehl’s pharmacy business. Possessing the expertise to grow the Kiehl’s brand while upholding the heritage of quality and service, Aaron’s takeover of the management of Kiehl’s in 1961 was indeed a natural transition. Aaron aimed to expand the pharmacy by focusing on skin and hair care products. In the 1960s, he ceased the production of homeopathic products in the pharmacy, shifting focus toward developing and selling the natural care products that would make Kiehl’s famous. A wide variety of products were formulated and packaged right inside the pharmacy. Aaron Morse avoided fancy and expensive packaging, preferring generic medicine containers packed with as much information as possible and affixed with simple handwritten labels. He developed innovative products such as shower gels and grapefruit-scented hair shampoos. It was Aaron Morse who established Kiehl’s generous policy of providing complimentary samples. While pursuing the goal of becoming a renowned brand rather than focusing solely on profit, he was confident that success would ultimately follow.
Mr. Morse had many passions, including model airplanes, race cars, and motorcycles. He displayed these items, which he had collected over the years, in the Kiehl’s store for the enjoyment of customers. Noticing that among the couples visiting the pharmacy, male customers in particular were not interested in cosmetics, Morse decided to bring his personal collections and airplanes to the store so that husbands would be occupied and entertained while women shopped more comfortably. The entire collection was exhibited from 1978 until 1990. In addition, Morse showcased the vintage motorcycle collection he had amassed over the years. Today, Morse’s prized motorcycles continue to be on display in Kiehl’s stores.
1980:
Irving Morse passed away.
1988:
Aaron Morse’s daughter, Jami Morse, takes the helm at Kiehl’s.
Aaron’s daughter, Jami, dedicated her life to the development of Kiehl’s and assumed the roles of President and CEO of the growing company in 1989.
1996:
Aaron Morse passed away.
2000:
L’Oréal acquires Kiehl’s.
2001:
Jami Morse steps down from the presidency; a second store opened in San Francisco.
Today;
Based in New York since 1851, Kiehl’s is now a natural hair and skin care subsidiary of French cosmetics giant L’Oréal. Kiehl’s was built by three generations of the Morse family, and since 2000, L’Oréal has preserved the original store that made Kiehl’s products famous as a tourist museum. The company’s address in the East Village is a 19th-century pharmacy filled with all kinds of historical objects, ranging from family photographs and pictures of Olympic skiers and fighter planes to a collection of vintage motorcycles. Avoiding advertising expenses in marketing, Kiehl sought to promote its products primarily by developing relationships with New York’s famous makeup artists and hairstylists, and by offering free product samples to customers visiting the pharmacy.
Shortly after being acquired by L’Oréal, Kiehl opened a second store in San Francisco, and today it has branches in many major cities.
Over the years and across generations, the Kiehls continued to grow without advertising, as a result of their product quality, principles, and dedication to delivering customer-focused quality service.
By the late 1990s, significant efforts were made to limit the company’s growth; however, as demand for Kiehl’s preparations increased, controlling this growth became increasingly difficult. Driven by the surging demand for Kiehl’s products, and in order not to compromise on product quality in accordance with company principles amidst the challenge of meeting this rising demand, the family had to sell the company to L’Oréal in 2000 to ensure the Kiehl’s brand would endure for centuries.
FINAL WORD; While managing our pharmacies with principles, we must also succeed in producing through our knowledge…
Spec. Pharm. Ahmet Nezihi Pekcan
Pekcan Pharmacy – Konya
[email protected]
Tel: (332) 3520657http://www.majistralformul.com/
