Maison Desti

Perfumery Maison Desti was founded by Madame Mary "Desti" Dempsey (1871–1931), a fascinating and multifaceted woman whose ventures spanned art, beauty, and literature. Born on October 10, 1871, in Quebec, Canada, Desti made her mark as the proprietor of the Maison Desti Beauty Products cosmetics firm. Her entrepreneurial spirit extended beyond cosmetics; she also operated a sophisticated New York City studio located at 603 Fifth Avenue. This space offered an eclectic array of art objects, perfumes, and fashionable items such as batik scarves, catering to a clientele that valued creativity and refinement.

Desti's personal life was as remarkable as her professional achievements. She was the mother of Preston Sturges, the celebrated Hollywood screenwriter and director. Additionally, she shared a close, enduring friendship with the iconic dancer and choreographer Isadora Duncan, serving as Duncan's confidante for over two decades. This profound connection inspired Desti to pen The Untold Story: The Life of Isadora Duncan, 1921–1927, a memoir published in 1929 that shed light on the latter years of Duncan's extraordinary life.

Through her artistic pursuits and vibrant social circle, Mary Desti left an indelible legacy, blending the worlds of beauty, culture, and storytelling.

Mary Desti, known for her vivid imagination, relished in the belief that she was descended from Italian nobility. She fancied the idea that her surname, Dempsey, was a mispronunciation of the princely name "d’Este." Acting on this notion, she established a cosmetics business in Europe in 1911, naming it Maison d’Este. She even traced her imagined lineage to Mary Beatrice d’Este of Modena, the devout wife of England’s King James II. However, when the noble d’Este family threatened legal action over the use of their name, Mary rebranded her business as Maison Desti, adopting the name as her middle name.

Around this time, Mary married a Turkish man, Vely Bey. During a visit to Vely’s family, she developed a small rash on her face. Vely’s father, Elias Pasha, a physician to the Sultan, concocted a purple lotion with a white sediment, explaining that it was a favored treatment among the women of Abdul-Hamid’s court and the principal seraglios of Turkey. To Mary’s amazement, the rash vanished almost instantly. This success inspired her to market the lotion under the name Le Secret du Harem. Initially reluctant to share the formula, Elias Pasha eventually relented due to Mary’s status as his son’s wife.

With this lotion as her flagship product, Mary established her cosmetics house. Although originally named Maison d’Este, legal threats prompted a swift rebranding to Maison Desti. She found a prime location for her salon on the mezzanine floor of 4 Rue de la Paix in Paris, nestled between Place Vendôme and the Opéra Garnier. The interior was designed by Paul Poiret, Isadora Duncan’s friend and a renowned couturier who had ventured into interior design under the name Atelier Martine. Mary enthusiastically declared the results "fantastic."

To expand the appeal of her salon, Mary realized she needed more than just the skin lotion. She partnered with a famous manicurist, Mrs. Kantor, to market a nail product line called "Kantorshine". She also brought on a skilled hairdresser, two Chinese chiropodists, and an experienced chemist to diversify the salon’s offerings. With her talented team and carefully curated product line, the Maison Desti Beauty Institute opened its doors, offering an upscale and innovative beauty experience to its clientele.

Mary Desti was known for her meticulous attention to detail, coupled with a charming ability to inspire others to assist her endeavors. These qualities, along with her natural talent for creating and marketing cosmetics, helped transform Maison Desti into a flourishing enterprise. Initially built around the Ottoman ointment, the salon soon expanded its offerings to include a variety of creams, rouges, and face powders. Mary introduced innovative tints to her powders, reflecting the modern beauty trends of the 1920s. These included a fashionable "sunburn" shade to complement the era's fascination with sunbathing, a lavender tint for color correction, and an ochre hue designed for Hispanic women—diversifying beyond the conventional shades of the time.

Recognizing the importance of fragrance in her beauty line, Mary decided to develop perfumes to sell under the Maison Desti name. Her resourcefulness led her to collaborate with the prestigious Parisian perfume house LT Piver. During a visit to their premises, she discovered a remarkable fragrance that Piver was not planning to market. They graciously allowed her to purchase the formula and even provided some of their aged alcohol for her to recreate the scent. She named this signature perfume Beatrice D’Esti, a nod to her imagined noble heritage.

By 1915, Maison Desti's perfume collection had expanded significantly, offering a wide array of fragrances. These included Ambre, Peau d'Amour, Ye Old Lace Handkerchief, Lilas, Jasmin, Whither Thou Goest, Isadora Duncan, Incense Royale, Quierime, Laughing Waters, Moi-Même, Hours of the Day, Aurore, and Turquoise. Each fragrance reflected Mary's flair for naming and her ability to craft captivating scents, ensuring that Maison Desti appealed to the tastes of a sophisticated and diverse clientele.

The perfumes of Desti:

• 1914 Beatrice D'Esti
• 1914 Ambre
• 1914 Peau d'Amour
• 1914 Ye Old Lace Handkerchief
• 1914 Whither Thou Goest
• 1914 Turquoise
• 1914 Quierime
• 1914 Moi-Meme
• 1914 Aurore
• 1914 Isadora Duncan
• 1914 Jasmin
• 1914 Lilas
• 1914 Saphir
• 1914 Devinez
• 1914 Laughing Waters
• 1914 L'Invitation a La Dans
• 1915 Hours of the Day
• 1915 Incense Royale

Mary Desti was a visionary in the world of perfumery, deeply attuned to the nuances of scent and their ability to evoke emotions and experiences. She described her perfume Hours of the Day as an essence that could be worn at any hour, though it was ideally suited for the evening. In crafting this fragrance, Mary began with early morning flowers, particularly the violet, whose fragrance is enriched by the dew and the scent of the earth. She then blended in the sweet fragrances of spring flowers like hyacinths and jonquils, followed by roses of all kinds, from the delicate sweet briar to the more exotic eastern varieties. To complete the composition, she added a secret selection of flowers, binding the blend together with the heady note of jasmine. Hours of the Day, she said, was a delightful symphony of nature’s finest blooms.

Mary also spoke of Aurore, a perfume that she credited to a clairvoyant’s suggestion. The clairvoyant had recommended a blend of lilac, jasmine, and roses in certain proportions to create a fragrance that would make anyone irresistible. Mary followed the advice, adding a few drops of her own secret essence to perfect the blend. The result was a perfume that embodied the delicate beauty of floating pink clouds. The first person to experience Aurore was a comic opera star who arrived at Mary’s salon in a state of melancholy. After using the fragrance, the actress was transformed, and Mary confidently declared, "It will make everyone love you."

Another of Mary’s standout creations was Whither Thou Goest, which she described as embodying the devotion and faith of the biblical Ruth. This fragrance, inspired by the flowers and grasses of the Eastern night, captured the essence of wildflowers, honey, and dew-kissed fields. In contrast, Turquoise was a fragrance inspired by the color blue—drawing from the sky, the sea, violets, and the wind. Mary believed that Turquoise expressed the very spirit of the color, evoking a sense of tranquility and depth.

Peau d’Amour, or "the envelopment of love," was a fragrance as intimate as its name suggests, while Ye Old Lace Handkerchief evoked the delicate scent of lavender, reminiscent of cherished heirlooms and memories. Then there was Laughing Waters, a light and refreshing toilet water that captured the essence of pure joy. Mary understood that every creation had its own natural scent, and she took pride in matching these fragrances to the objects and emotions they represented. For instance, Quierime, meaning "love me" in Spanish, was created for the luxurious scent of sables. A blend of ambergris, Russian leather, and lilac, Quierime encapsulated the allure and mystique of this noble fur.

In her musings on the deeper connection between scent and emotion, Mary Desti once said, "Love is but a perfume. Mental conditions and emotions all bear an odor, and we, like animals, recognize our mates through the sense of smell; only humans' is more spiritual." Her profound understanding of the power of fragrance allowed her to create perfumes that were not just smells, but powerful symbols of love, devotion, and identity. Each of her creations was a reflection of her artistry and her belief in the emotional and spiritual power of scent.

During her travels to Venice, Mary Desti embarked on an exciting creative project that captured the essence of her unique approach to beauty and luxury. She commissioned iridescent glass bottles, each carefully crafted with a miniature of the renowned painting of Beatrice, which was then delicately etched into the glass to serve as the label. These bottles, which embodied both artistry and elegance, became an emblem of the Maison Desti brand. Seeking further refinement in her packaging, Mary formed an alliance with a cutting-edge box manufacturer in Paris—Maison Tolmer. Known for their innovative designs, Tolmer produced some of the most stylish luxury packaging for perfumes, cosmetics, and chocolates in France, drawing comparisons to the famous Draeger firm. The beautifully crafted boxes were adorned with exquisitely printed graphics, advertising posters, and publicity brochures, further elevating the appeal of Mary’s products. Tolmer was also responsible for creating packaging for other notable perfume houses, including Suzanne Thierry, LT Piver, Sauze, and Bourjois, ensuring that Maison Desti's products were wrapped in some of the finest packaging designs of the time.

Not only was Mary meticulous about packaging, but she also sourced the finest glasswork for her products. At prestigious establishments such as Baccarat and Lalique, beautiful crystal bottles were produced for lotions derived from the secret Harem formula, while alabaster jars were crafted for her creams and unguents. These luxurious containers underscored the high quality of the products within and further solidified Maison Desti’s reputation for sophistication.

In 1912, Mary made a significant step in her business expansion by traveling to New York, armed with sample cases of her exquisite products. She made her way to the renowned B. Altman department store, where, dressed in a luxurious mink coat and gleaming pearls, she requested an audience with the head of the beauty department. The department head was immediately impressed with Mary’s line, resulting in a remarkable purchase of $10,000 worth of Desti products—an exceptional achievement for a newcomer to the American market.

Upon her return to Paris, Mary was visited by a distinguished gentleman who expressed admiration for her rapid success in the cosmetics industry. “What you have done, Madame Desti, in such a short time, is one of the most remarkable adventures in our business that I have ever seen,” he said. Revealing that he was the most successful perfumer in the world, he proposed an intriguing collaboration. “I do not manufacture cosmetics myself, but I suggest you let me handle the production of your cosmetics and distribute them globally. In exchange, you will receive twenty-five percent of the profits,” he offered. This was no ordinary proposition—it came from François Coty, the visionary behind one of the most successful perfume houses in the world. Coty believed that Desti’s cosmetics and his perfumes would form a powerful and harmonious partnership, one that would elevate both brands to new heights.

Mary, however, was not easily swayed. As Preston Sturges would later ruefully recount, Mary turned down François Coty’s generous offer, believing he was attempting to take advantage of her. Her decision was a reflection of her desire to maintain full control over her brand and its direction. Despite the opportunity to expand, she refused to surrender her vision to someone else’s influence. In the midst of this, her friend Isadora, ever the Bohemian, suggested an extreme course of action. She proposed that Mary toss all the perfume bottles out the window and onto the street, a dramatic gesture meant to symbolize disdain for business. "That would be a great ending," Isadora said, "and show your disdain for business." Mary, however, did not embrace this radical idea. Instead, she chose to refine the commercial aspect of her business, presenting Maison Desti as an "amusing salon" rather than a purely commercial venture. It became a gathering place for famous personalities, including the King of Spain and Crown Prince Rupert of Bavaria, who were known to drop by and socialize, reinforcing the salon's aura of exclusivity and sophistication.

In keeping with her vision of an elegant retreat, Mary expanded her presence by opening a second branch of Maison Desti in Deauville, the glamorous resort town in Normandy. In 1914, Mary struck a deal with the owner of Ciro’s, a fashionable Parisian restaurant, who had rented a house for the season in Deauville. The arrangement allowed Maison Desti to occupy the ground floor of the building, while the restaurant continued its operations on the first floor. Preston, still a young teenager attending school in Switzerland, was appointed as the manager of the cosmetics shop. In exchange, he received room and board at Ciro’s, giving him the opportunity to live above the restaurant and enjoy meals there. However, with the onset of the First World War, Mary sent Preston back to America, fearing he might be tempted to enlist in the military.

In the United States, Preston wasted no time in establishing the American branch of Maison Desti. He arrived with as many perfume bottles and cosmetics as he could carry and headed straight for 347 Fifth Avenue. There, he joined forces with Daisy Andrews to manage the American operations, securing a place for Maison Desti in prominent department stores like B. Altman, Bonwit Teller, Jordan Marsh, Best & Co., Mandel Brothers, and Marshall Field’s. However, by the end of 1914, reports from the New York shop painted an unsettling picture, prompting Mary to travel to New York herself to assess the situation. After a heated argument with Daisy Andrews, who subsequently walked out, a lawyer advised Mary to declare bankruptcy. With heavy heart, she took the lawyer’s advice and made a clean break, closing the posh Fifth Avenue shop for good. This decision weighed on Mary for the rest of her life, a regret she carried with her, marking a bittersweet chapter in the story of Maison Desti.

The American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review, Volume 9, 1915, provides a detailed account of Mary Vely Bey's, also known as Mary Sturges, financial troubles. According to the publication, Mary, doing business as Desti and operating a perfumery at 347 Fifth Avenue, filed a petition in bankruptcy on December 23, 1914. The filing revealed liabilities totaling $10,796, contrasted sharply with assets of only $1,548. These assets included $111 in stock and $548 in accounts receivable. Additionally, Mary had some furnishings in Paris, but these were subject to debts with minimal equity. She also held a claim against Daisy Andrews, likely related to the dispute that had occurred earlier. Among the creditors listed were prominent institutions, such as the Metropolitan Opera Company, which was owed $210 for advertising, and the Walcott Hotel, which had not been paid $150. Mary also owed $2,000 in rent to A. Houzot of Paris, and a substantial $6,800 to creditors in Paris. She had been in business for only a year at this point. In response to the bankruptcy filing, Judge Hough appointed MJ Eichbauer as the receiver with a bond set at $500. The report paints a stark picture of the financial difficulties faced by Mary, marking a significant turning point in the history of Maison Desti.

Despite the financial challenges and the closing of the Fifth Avenue location, Mary Vely Bey remained determined to revive the Maison Desti brand. She relocated the remnants of the store to a smaller but charming space at 23 East Ninth Street, strategically positioned across from the Café Lafayette, in an area that exuded a distinctly French atmosphere. This new location became the heart of the revived Desti cosmetic line, including products such as Aurore Rouge, the signature face powders with their unique tints, and the popular "Secret of the Harem" cream, which was rebranded as Youth Cream due to Turkey's alliance with Germany during World War I.

Though the orders kept coming in, they were slow and scarce. The main customers for the Desti products were large department stores, and as their stock began to deplete, they requested replenishments. However, due to the ongoing war, importing goods from France was not feasible. Mary and her son, Preston, had no choice but to make do with the available American supplies. They sourced boxes and bottles from Whitall-Tatum & Company, but these were a far cry from the elegant Venetian glass or the exquisite crystal bottles from Baccarat and Lalique that Mary had once used. The essential oils, fixatives, and eau de cologne spirits they could acquire were functional but lacked the finesse of their French counterparts. Undeterred, they also procured attractive boxes from a box maker named Mr. Rothchild and brought in an elderly part-time chemist to assist in blending the perfumes and cosmetics.

Preston recalls the hectic atmosphere of the shop during this period, noting how even his friends pitched in to help with the production process. "Everyone would help fill the powder or rouge boxes through a round hole in the bottom... packing the powder or Aurora Rouge tightly with a soup spoon," he explained. After packing, the bottom hole would be sealed with a piece of green calendered paper, and the shade would be stamped onto the box. The final step involved wrapping the boxes in a new product Preston was particularly excited about: cellophane, which he believed had great potential. Though he did not capitalize on the trend, he foresaw its future in the packaging industry.

Despite the difficulties, the shop did attract some notable customers, including actress Evelyn Nesbitt, opera singer Ganna Walska (who had her own perfume line), socialites Peggy Guggenheim and Mae Marsh, and Lillian Russell. The daughter of cosmetics mogul Madame CJ Walker was also a client, adding a touch of prestige to the store’s roster.

However, by 1914, external pressures took their toll. The Rue de la Paix store in Paris closed after a patriotic mob, incensed by Mary's marriage to Vely Bey, stormed the shop when Turkey allied with Germany. The war made it nearly impossible to import Desti products from France, further hampering the business. As a result, the company began to flounder, struggling to stay afloat amidst mounting challenges.

In 1916, Mary expanded Maison Desti internationally by opening a branch in London, located at 6, 7, and 8 Old Bond Street, above Teofani, a well-known tobacconist. During her time in London, Vely Bey proposed an innovative idea—paperless cigarettes bound by a tobacco leaf with rose petal tips. Mary, a non-smoker who was not fond of the taste of tobacco, saw potential in masking this unpleasant flavor. She devised a scented tobacco blend called Desti’s Ambre Cigarettes, infused with amber, which proved to be a hit, especially among women. The cigarettes were so popular that they were dedicated to French revue artist Alice Delysia, further cementing their chic, fashionable appeal.

The Desti brand, always known for its luxurious and artful designs, garnered praise for its exceptional packaging. Advertising & Selling, Volume 25 (1915) highlighted the elegance of Desti’s designs, noting that the perfume and powder packages were among the most striking. However, with two ounces of perfume selling for six dollars, the cost of the product was as much a work of art as its packaging. The brand continued to innovate with new offerings such as the perfume Whither Thou Goest and the renamed Youth Lotion, originally Secret of the Harem Ointment. Despite these efforts, the business was struggling, and Mary called upon her son, Preston, to help in London and reinvigorate the brand.

By this time, Preston had come of age. At 18, he made the decision to leave the family business behind and serve as a cadet in the Aviation Section of the U.S. Signal Corps during World War I. When the war ended before he saw combat, he felt deeply disillusioned and unfulfilled. After completing his training with honors and earning his wings, Preston returned to New York and resumed his work at Maison Desti.

While Preston was away, Mary had relocated the shop on Ninth Avenue to a more prestigious address at 4 West 57th Street and transformed it into a beauty salon to cater to an upscale clientele. The “perfumed warm atmosphere,” however, did not resonate with Preston. Rather than conducting business inside the salon, he opted to promote Desti products outside, visiting beauty salons and hairdressers directly. It was in 1920 that Preston launched his most successful product to date—Preston’s Red Red Rouge, a revolutionary kiss-proof, indelible lipstick that would become a commercial success.

Despite the initial success of the lipstick, Preston soon grew disillusioned with the beauty salon and cosmetics business. He found it increasingly unappealing and too feminine. He dismissed the makeup artists and manicurists, including Peggy Sage, the head Desti manicurist, who would later go on to found her own successful cosmetics company. Preston transitioned to running a small cosmetics manufacturing and packaging operation in Brooklyn, aiming to cut costs by moving to a less glamorous area. While in Brooklyn, Preston focused on fulfilling orders and expanding his customer base.

In 1923, Preston’s fortunes took a turn for the better when he married Estelle Godfrey. With her inheritance, he was able to invest in a grinding and sifting machine, hire a chemist, and further establish Maison Desti as a legitimate cosmetics factory. The couple found larger quarters and began to see positive results as the business grew. In 1924, two distributors from the Lionel Trading Company visited Brooklyn and offered to purchase $1,000 worth of Desti products per month in exchange for exclusive distribution rights. For Preston, this deal felt like the breakthrough he had been waiting for, and he began to dream of a successful future for the business.

However, just as he was beginning to feel confident about the business's success, Mary returned from Europe in 1924 and demanded the business back under her control. Driven by jealousy and a desire to reclaim what she felt was rightfully hers, she insisted on taking over Maison Desti. Preston dismantled his Brooklyn operation, and Mary began searching for a more attractive location for the brand, one that would reflect her vision. Unfortunately, the deal with the Lionel Trading Company fell through, Preston’s marriage ended, and he left for Chicago to be closer to his father.

Eventually, Preston returned to New York and visited his mother at her Fifth Avenue apartment and boutique, where she now sold batik scarves along with perfumes and cosmetics. Tired of the city, Mary expressed a desire to return to Paris and offered to hand the business back to Preston if he could fund her trip. The tangled dynamics between mother and son, along with the shifting fortunes of Maison Desti, reflected the broader challenges they faced in maintaining the legacy of the brand.

Mary Desti passed away in 1931 at the age of 56 at her residence on 603 Fifth Avenue, following a two-month battle with leukemia. Her death marked the end of an era for Maison Desti, a brand she had worked tirelessly to build and promote. Despite her entrepreneurial spirit and contributions to the cosmetics industry, her illness and subsequent passing led to the closure of the business she had established with such dedication. By the time of her death, Maison Desti had gradually wound down, its legacy fading as the perfume and cosmetics world shifted in new directions. Though the brand had once been synonymous with luxury and innovation, Mary's passing marked the conclusion of a remarkable chapter in the history of American beauty and fragrance.