Caswell-Massey

There are few rules in life that are not open to interpretation:

1) Call your mother.

2) Root for the home team, no matter how many premature grey hairs they cause.

3) Smell nice.

Pretty simple stuff, really. And since 1752 (twenty-four years before our states became united), Caswell-Massey has helped Americans with that tricky last rule. The Newport, Rhode Island, based personal care/apothecary is one of the oldest toiletry companies in America. As a perfumery it ranks as the third longest running organization in the world, not bad considering the relatively newborn existence of the United States. It is hardly sheer luck; that golden third rule is a requirement and it takes a special breed of operation to provide such assistance for the better part of three centuries.

Sparing stuffy, historical name-dropping that definitely exists (but would cause the world’s oldest man to scratch his head in confusion), Caswell-Massey, which has one retail store (NYC) and a presence online and in department stores, has been the preferred personal care choice for such iconic modern stalwarts as Jackie O and The Rolling Stones. Their products cater to the elite with one caveat-anyone can join this club. Focused on fragrances, shaving accoutrements, soaps and lotions, the company realizes that some things are essentially timeless. Though it is called personal care, it is anything but personal; Caswell-Massey is a purveyor of arms, necessary weapons in the war of attraction, because at our best, everything we do is for that someone special. A famed, anonymous quote exists as such: “Every guy should give their girl three things-a stuffed animal, jewelry, and one of his sweatshirts, sprayed with cologne.”

It takes no genius to realize which of the three she will cherish most. And since the days of powdered wigs and colonies, Caswell-Massey has had us smelling like roses.