Founded 1838 | Parent organization L Brands | |
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C.O. Bigelow Apothecaries is an American pharmacy currently owned by Ian Ginsberg. C.O. Bigelow was founded in 1838 in New York's Greenwich Village and is the oldest surviving apothecary–pharmacy in the U.S.A.
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Limited Brands had an agreement to open and operate other stores bearing the Bigelow name which were operated as upscale beauty and skin care stores to compete with other stores such as Sephora and Neiman Marcus. However, all of these stores were closed, leaving only the original shop. Certain products from the line are sold in Bath and Body Works stores throughout the United States.
Due to its longevity and popularity, C.O. Bigelow was honored with a Village Award from the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation in 2002.
Stores
The only store still operating is the original Sixth Avenue store in Greenwich Village. C.O. Bigelow products remain available on the company's Web site and at Bath and Body works as well.
All of the other stores have closed. The Easton Town Center store in Columbus, Ohio closed its doors in February 2012. Several stores closed in 2009: Northshore Mall in Peabody, Massachusetts closed June 28, 2009; Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey closed September 4, 2009; and Plaza at King of Prussia in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania/Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania closed July 1, 2009. Other closed stores were located in Copley Place in Boston, Westfield Hawthorn Center in Vernon Hills, Illinois and Water Tower Place in Chicago, which closed in 2010. The location at Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Illinois closed on August 18, 2012.
A C.O. Bigelow store was to be built in Tysons Corner Center in Tysons Corner, Virginia, but the scheduled construction was canceled.
Advertising
Famous patrons of C.O. Bigelow (as featured in advertisements) include Thomas Edison, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Mark Twain.
Products
Products sold for C.O Bigelow are colognes, hair and body wash, shaving cream, aftershave, lotion, and body spray/mist. Some of these products such as their Barber collection are notable for their colors, such as Elixir Red, Elixir Black, Elixir Green, Elixir Blue, Elixir White and introduced to the line-up in 2011 are Elixir Gold and Elixir Black Pepper.