{"id":4751,"date":"2021-10-31T18:30:55","date_gmt":"2021-11-01T01:30:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/housefragrance.com\/?p=4751"},"modified":"2021-10-31T18:30:59","modified_gmt":"2021-11-01T01:30:59","slug":"henri-bendel-candles-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/housefragrance.com\/henri-bendel-candles-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Henri Bendel Candles Review: Are They Good?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It takes work to find the right candle to fragrance your home but the process is worth it. What\u2019s more of a bummer, though, is finding candles you love and then finding out they\u2019ve been discontinued. If you were ever a Bendel Girl or just curious about Henri Bendel candles, you might wonder if they\u2019re any good. Like, is it worth it to hunt for them online?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of now there aren\u2019t any new Bendel scents available. But even though the company has folded, you can still find some Henri Bendel candles scattered across the Internet. Since candles don\u2019t expire, and they retain their scent so long as they\u2019re stored properly, you can still enjoy Henri Bendel fragrances within your home. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continue reading to learn about the scents I discovered along with a possible Henri Bendel candles plot twist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Henri<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

All About Henri Bendel<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Henri Bendel was a legacy brand that was in business for over 100 years. In their 123rd year in business, all 23 of their stores were closed due to slowed sales. Their website, and even their flagship Fifth Avenue location in New York City, all went dark in January 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Originally founded in 1895 by Henri Willis Bendel, the fashion designer and businessman from the south created a subculture around fine jewelry, handbags, accessories, gifts, and home fragrances for women. Their tagline being, \u201cBecome a Bendel Girl.\u201d<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Bendel had training in millinery and became a pioneer of department stores. There were lots of firsts, like hosting his own in-store fashion shows, offering customers in-store makeovers, and Bendel was even the first retail store to sell its own fragrances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His store was also one of the first to take focused efforts towards branding. Their signature brown and white striped retail bags and boxes were as iconic as Bloomingdale’s kraft brown bags in small, medium, and large.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another first, in 1913, Henri Bendel was the only U.S. retailer to carry Coco Chanel designs. No doubt his fluency in French gave him an edge. After a sudden death at home in 1936, Bendel’s nephew whose first name was also Henri, stepped in as company president until his retirement in 1954.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More firsts followed when Geraldine Stutz became president in 1957. <\/strong>Because of her, Henri Bendel was the first retailer to showcase new talent like Ralph Lauren and Perry Ellis. She is also known to have launched a new approach to in-store merchandising. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rapid Expansion to Slow Decline<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For over a century, Bendel’s Fifth Avenue store was their only retail location. But in 2008, they began opening retail locations nationwide until the number grew to a total of twenty-nine, including the Fifth Ave location. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A year later, they stopped selling apparel at their stores. And within five years, they would only sell Henri Bendel products. In five more years, early 2019, the business had completely dissolved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s rather sad, really, that this historical company seemed to have been a casualty of profit. But I guess markets and companies evolve over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their parent company wanted to grow their younger, trendier companies, like Victoria’s Secret. Henri Bendel had been purchased by L Brands back in 1985. This is the same parent company that owned Victoria\u2019s Secret, The Limited, Bath & Body Works<\/a>, and more stores. The luxurious Bendel brand had become a financial burden and L Brands decided to sever its cord in order to further grow their more profitable companies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as of August 2021, L Brands no longer exists as one entity. It\u2019s been divided into Bath & Body Works, LLC and Victoria\u2019s Secret. All other associated companies had been sold off over the years. Only these two remain. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Within the Bath & Body Works brand, you will find that they have distribution rights to C. O. Bigelow Apothecaries, which creates upscale beauty products and White Barn Candle Company<\/a>, which specializes in premium scented candles. I\u2019ll mention more about White Barn later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bendel Girl Scents<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Henri Bendel candles were well loved when the company was at its height. Being a Bendel Girl meant that you fully stepped into yourself as a woman. Whether you were sporty, chic, glamorous, quirky, or a fashionista, you could always find the perfect accessories and scents to match your personality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bendel knew his girls. There was a scent assigned to every \u201cBendel Girl\u201d profile. The Glamorous Bendel Girl might be most drawn to White Orchid candles while the Fashionista might prefer Black Currant. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are just two examples. Of course there were many more scents to choose from and any of the women taking the assessments could have preferred a different scent. I just think it\u2019s worth noting that this iconic brand went to great lengths to get to know their customers in order to create a complete experience for them whether in or outside the home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Henri Bendel Candles<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Customers continue to cherish Henri Bendel candles. Amongst their home fragrance offerings, they sold signature, 4 oz travel tin, luxe candles, and also fragrance reeds. Their single-wick signature candles were in 9.4 oz frosted glass that looked like votives, and examples of their scents include: <\/p>\n\n\n\n