Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Revillon Frères was a French fur and luxury goods company, founded in 1723.
At the end of the 19th century, Revillon had stores in Paris, London, New York, and Montreal.

Fur trading operation
In 1903, Revillon set up a network of fur-trading posts in northern Canada to compete with the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC). By 1909, Revillon had forty-eight stores in its Eastern Arctic division while HBC had fifty-two. In 1936 HBC bought out Revillon's fur-trading operation.
Many of the Inuit villages in Nunavik, in northern Quebec, Canada, are located on sites originally occupied by Revillon Frères trading posts.
Revillon Frères financed the 1922 film Nanook of the North, filmed near one of their trading posts at Inukjuak, Quebec on northeastern Hudson Bay.
There is a Revillon Frères Museum in Moosonee, Ontario which has been closed for several years.

Later history
In the 1960s, Revillon acquired Grauer Furs, New York's preeminent fur manufacturing company. Grauer Furs was founded by Austrian immigrant William Grauer and later operated by Grauer's two sons, Abraham and Herman. In 1970, in a deal negotiated by Herman Grauer, Revillon became the fur supplier to Saks 5th Avenue. This arrangement lasted until 1995.
In 1982, Revillon was acquired by hypermarket operator Cora, and became its luxury division Cora-Revillon. Subsequently, Cora-Revillon became a separate company, now privately owned, with Revillon as its primary brand. Besides furs, Revillon produces perfume.

Revillon Freres

Revillon Freres