Conair Corporation

Last updated
Conair Corporation
Type Private
IndustryConsumer goods
Founded1959;64 years ago (1959)
FoundersJulian Rizzuto, Leandro Rizzuto
Headquarters Stamford, Connecticut, USA
Key people
Ronald T. Diamond (President)
ProductsHair care appliances, tools and accessories, personal care, travel accessories, small consumer and commercial kitchen appliances, cookware, tools, etc.
BrandsConair, BabylissPRO, Scunci, Cuisinart, Waring, Allegro, Interplak, TravelSmart, Conair Hospitality, ConairPRO Pet
RevenueDecrease2.svg US$ 2.11 billion (2016) [1]
Number of employees
3,571 (2016) [1]
Parent American Securities
Subsidiaries Babyliss SARL
Website www.conair.com

Conair Corporation is an American company based in Stamford, Connecticut which sells small appliances, personal care products, and health and beauty products for both professionals and consumers.

Contents

It is majority-owned by private equity firm American Securities, with some minority stakes held by family members of founder Leandro Rizzuto. [2]

History

Founded in 1959 in a garage in Queens, New York, [3] Conair started out by selling hair rollers and then hair dryers. It continued to expand, and became a public company in 1972, but then went private again after a leveraged buyout in 1985. [4] It was owned by the co-founder and chairman Leandro Rizzuto until his death in 2017.

Conair is one of the largest producers of hair care appliances, ranging from hair dryers and styling irons to its innovative hair curlers, Curl Secret and Miracurl Stylers. In 1995, BaByliss was acquired by the Conair Corporation. The BaByliss brand was created by the hairstylists René Lelièvre and Roger Lemoine, working in Paris in the early 1960's. Lelièvre innovated on the early curling tong, and marketed his products for professional hair stylists. [5]

The company also manufactures a wide range of home kitchen appliances under its brands Cuisinart and Waring.

In 2002 Rizzuto pleaded guilty to tax evasion associated with his tenure as Chief Executive Officer of Conair, and was sentenced to a prison term of 20 to 37 months. [6]

Conair acquired Cuisinart in 1989, Waring Products in 1998, and bag manufacturer Allegro in 2007. [7] Pollenex was acquired after Jarden acquired Holmes in 2005, and it was rebranded as Conair Home in 2013.

In 2019, Transom Capital Group announced it has acquired Conair Corporation's professional liquids division, which will be renamed to Beauty Quest Group. [8]

Pollenex machine Pollenex machine.jpg
Pollenex machine

Brands

Representative brands by division include:

Conair Personal Care

Hair and Beauty Accessories

Professional Products

Cuisinart

Waring Commercial Products

Conair Hospitality

Subsidiaries

Conair sells products in over 100 countries and has offices and subsidiaries in over 12 countries including Babyliss SARL in Paris, France.

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References

  1. 1 2 "Conair: improving work order collaboration to reduce cost". SAP. Archived from the original on 2014-07-27. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  2. "Conair Corporation To Be Acquired By American Securities" (Press release). American Securities and Conair Corporation. 2021-03-12. Retrieved 2023-03-08.
  3. Elissa Gootman (2002-04-03). "Conair Founder and Executive Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion in Federal Court". New York Times. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  4. "Leandro Rizzuto". Forbes. March 2013. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  5. "BaByliss corporate history". BaByliss. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
  6. Rosemary Schlank (2002-09-23). "Ex-CEO Gets Jail Time For Corporate Kickback Scheme". Accounting Web. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  7. "Conair Corporation Acquires Allegro Manufacturing, Inc". Appliance Magazine. 2007-09-19. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  8. "Transom Capital Group Acquires Liquids Division from Conair Corporation | Markets Insider". markets.businessinsider.com. 2019-07-09. Archived from the original on 2020-02-17. Retrieved 2020-02-17.