Jaiscient

Jaiscient was a subdivision of Sterling International Trading Co., Ltd. of Akron, Ohio. and was established in 1961. 

The fragrance company was started in 1961 by H.H. "Harry" Seff, who was no stranger to the world of business. Born in New York City, Seff started his life as a sign painter at the age of fifteen and then had the honor of being one of 25 camouflage experts in the country during the first world war. In 1925 he married Dorothy Marie Mottinger, who later worked as his secretary in several ventures. Seff at one time owned the world's largest competitive independent bill posting company, the HS Seff Advertising Co of Ohio, which covered some 100 cities in the East. The company was incorporated in Ohio in 1926, and in New Jersey in 1929, but unfortunately, it did not manage to survive the toils of the Great Depression. 

Harry H. Seff in 1928

He then started Sterling Outdoor Advertising, another billboard concern in 1932, located at 56 North Summit Street, Akron, OH. A couple years later, Seff established the Old Colonial Distillery located on Federal Street in Akron, during the prohibition in February 1934. He said, "I was the only one in two licensed to produce cordials and blended [and rectified] whiskey." These products were manufactured at the plant and shipped all over the state and country for sale in state stores. Bonded whiskey and alcohol were then purchased from other companies by the Old Colonial concern and were combined and processed into blended whiskey with the aid of charred oak chips and flavoring compounds. A plant for distilling the whiskey was to be opened soon in the former Northern Rubber Co. plant in Barberton. 

By June of 1934, the company's license was revoked by the state, agents raided the distillery and seized 20 cases of liquor and one barrel of whiskey, the property was impounded and business was stopped. Seff sued the state of Ohio and claimed that he possessed a federal permit to manufacture the liquor and that the state's constitution prevented the government from collecting revenue due it. He also charged in the suit that the Ohio law authorized the seizure of property "without due process of law" and denied the company "equal protection of the law."

In July 1934, the company was ordered out of business permanently banned by the Ohio state liquor board inspector who described Seff's distillery company a "fly by night concern," a mushroom company that leapt into the liquor business in quest of big profits with only $1,000 worth of equipment. Seff said that the board was "playing politics." The liquor board held secret meetings and said that the Old Colonial distillery was really a sideline for the Sterling Advertising Co. In Sept of that year, he declared bankruptcy regarding the closing of his distillery and the closing of his Seff Advertising business.

Seff even did a stint in the newspaper business, publishing the "Illustrated Sun," in Akron, a weekly tabloid that ran for only a month in 1941. He was dismayed and said that "The Local merchants wouldn't support the paper. We had a fine little paper, but we couldn't get the support of the department stores."

While the distillery proved to be a success, and he was still running the bill posting business, he decided "there was something better than booze to make out of alcohol." He was determined to add a new business venture after he and his wife winter-vacationed at various spots in the Caribbean area. He said he was always intrigued by the perfumes, natural and handmade of the islands. So he worked away and developed a fragrance he called "Jaiscient" and trademarked the name in 1962. The name was derived from the words "Jamaica scent." This would prove to be the firm's most famous product line.  He set up to manufacture, bottle and package the perfume in a part of the already present billboard plant on North Summit Street. His wife Dorothy acted as secretary while their son Robert joined him and later participated as the company's Vice President.  

Harry H. Seff said that the Jaiscient perfume was said to be compounded by perfume chemists with over 100 years experience, using ingredients from the four corners of the world: France, Italy, Formosa, Madagascar, Paraguay, Haiti, India and Algeria. The fragrance line included mist, bath oil, dusting powder, cologne, after shave lotion as well as perfume. The Jaisicent line was originally sold in leading department and drug stores. By 1973, it was no longer offered at department stores and could only be obtained by mail order or by visiting the office in Akron.

Once the signature Jaiscient fragrance was a success, Seff decided to expand the line and add new fragrances under the Jaiscient Co. umbrella label and Jaiscient Co. itself became a subsidiary of Seff's Sterling Outdoor Advertising Co.

In 1962, French Bouquet was the next scent to make its debut, this fragrance was renamed Royal French Bouquet in 1976. In 1964, a men's toiletry line called Preferred Stock was added. Princess was introduced in 1969. Mademoiselle Mimi and Jasmin both made their first appearances in 1972, and an old favorite, Chypre was also added. In 1964, Precious, one of their most enduring fragrances, was introduced as "a faithful copy of Chanel No. 5."

To capitalize on the craze for the animalic scent of musk, they offered their own natural, not synthetic, musk oil perfume in 1974 which they called Royal Musk. Seff admitted at the time that he really didn't understand the trend for musk and said that "I think it's horrible, but some think it's great. Some women believe it's real sexy. A woman puts on a perfume to be attractive sexually." Also in 1974, two men's fragrances were released: Private Stock and Russian Leather.

In addition to perfumes, the company also put out other products: bath oils, dusting powders, sun tanning lotions, and after shave lotions.

Seff worked with perfume chemists like the Fritzche Brothers of New York. He reported that he paid $650 a gallon for his essential oils and said that only a "handful" of companies are equipped to produce the oils. "If I decide to make a new perfume, I get hold of the chemists who send the oils. We make up samples and then test with a panel of persons representing various ages and groups," explained Seff. He called his wife, Dorothy Marie, "the Nose" because she had a good sense of smell and helped determine decisions about perfumes. 

When the final decision on the scent is made, forms have to be sent to the US Treasury Department in Washington DC. "The government controls this business completely because of the alcohol involved," Seff explained. 

He then elaborated that two ounces of each component in the proposed perfume must be sent together with the finished product and other information such as what size bottles will be used and what will go on the label and so on. "From this information the department can tell how much alcohol we will need. If Washington says okay, we go ahead with production."

The Seff's son Robert was also in the family business and they made perfumes by adding the denatured alcohol and distilled water to the essential oil mixtures. The laboratory consisted of a small room lined with shelving, equipment, a couple of work tables and two refrigerators. The fragrance solution was run through powerful mixing vats and then its temperature was dropped to about 35 degrees Fahrenheit. Seff explained that "this is to marry the alcohol and perfume oil."

After mixing, the solution was then filtered to remove impurities and render the juice crystal clear. "Generally, we like to age our perfumes a year or two." Once the juice was filtered, it was stored in an underground cellar where a quantity of Jaiscient had already been maturing for at least 10 years. "Aging is very important just like in making whiskey to give the perfume a very fine bouquet," said Seff.

The Jaisicent perfume company was a small operation and didn't operate daily like other perfume manufacturers. "We operate like a drug store. When we get orders, we fill them," Seff said. He went on to explain that his products used to be marketed on the retail level, but he couldn't complete with big names such as Revlon and Faberge. So, as a result, he was forced to conduct business on a mail order only basis. He admitted that he didn't make much money from his perfumery business but said that "there's more to life than making money. I like to make something people like and like you for. I don't believe in running yourself to the undertaker trying to make a buck." 

The firm also solicited wholesale "special orders" via newspaper advertisements. In 1974, an advertisement for Jjaiscient fragrances mentioned that their men's fragrance, Private Stock is the same product originally called "Teak" which name they had sold to the Shulton Company, makers of the world renowned Old Spice Aftershave.  

In 1973, he produced 25,000 bottles of perfume for Kelly Girls and did another large order through Teen Mail, a mail operation. In 1974, his company was priming for a late autumn program with banks associated with Premium Advertising Association of America. A $45 package of products was to be available to customers. A bank may decide to give a certificate for $22.50 to a customer depositing $200. The customer then adds on the rest of the money for the package of gifts. 

In 1974, Sterling International, completed an order for the Holidays, shipped for the United States Post Exchanges for: Wright-Patterson Air Force base, Fort Campbell, Fort Leonard Wood, Scott Air Force Base, Fort Knox, Chanute Air Force base, and Offutt Air Force base. The US Army selected Jaiscient's Private Stock aftershave and cologne in the reusable flask; and their imported bottle filled with "French Bouquet" perfume.  

In 1977, Seff partnered up with two Akron school employees to produce a new men's fragrance line called mafia. Hoping to cash in on the Godfather movies and related publicity, the partners, Dick Sapronetti and Gordon Oster found a formula for deodorant and cologne and bottled both. They won the right to use the word "Mafia" as a trademark. The bottles were made by Kaufman Container Co of Cleveland and the boxes by Packaging Corp of America. The cologne bottles feature Sapronetti's face in a vaguely reminiscent Godfather-esque image staring through the clear fluid toward the front of the bottle. The boxes ae clean, with black lettering on white background, and a red heart dotting the "i" in Mafia. A little story about the history of the Mafia is written on the back of the box. The two slogans for the products are definitely considered cheesy by today's standards. The cologne is "Mafia persuade-her" and the deodorant is "Mafia protection."

Seff said that "when we are doing a lot of work, we call in a crew from Kelly Girls or Manpower." All of Jaiscient's fragrances were filled by hand in the laboratory, but their aerosol products were done in New Jersey and Chicago. Seff said that "the finest perfume can be put in a cheap bottle and someone will look at it and think it's a bunk of junk. The bottle, and the packaging, too, has to be right."

One example was the company's presentation they dub "Her Majesty", a large ground stoppered glass bottle holding 2.25 oz of the most expensive perfume called "Precious," made of a base dominated by jasmine flowers. The bottle is set in a white leatherette and gold platform box with matching cover. 

Jaiscient obtained all their glass bottles from Italy, Germany and France, and the plastic examples from domestic producers in the US. Seff said "I like to give local people jobs." And he meant it. His state of Ohio contributed quite a bit to his business venture. He procured boxes from Kent and Cleveland. The filter used in the perfume manufacturing process mentioned earlier was made in Talmadge and the hot gold stamping used on the labels was done in Akron. Rule dies which are like cutting dies to punch out the shapes needed for the cardboard trays holding the perfumes in the boxes were made in Cuyahoga Falls. The trays were punched out in Barberton. 

Dorothy Seff was 78 when passed away from cancer in 1979. In 1980, in honor of his wife, arrangements were made the American Cancer Society for the Jaiscient Co. to contribute 10% of all its sales to the fight against cancer. They payments were to be authenticated by a leading national accounting firm from the records of the company. The contribution was being made as a memorial to Dorothy.

Harry himself died after a short illness in 1982. At his 80th birthday party celebrated two years before, Harry decided that at his age, it was time to take it easy. "What he did was cut his work week down from six to only 5 1/2 days," said his son Robert. His son also said that "He was a man who liked to work and kept himself busy. He recently finished a book, his autobiography, which he talked about writing for 10 years or so. He really didn't expect to publish the book. It was just something he wanted to do."

The company ceased operations in 1983.  

The company, Sterling International Trading Co., Ltd is not affiliated with another of the same name operating at a later date.