If you buy a popular product, at least in the US, there’s a chance that if it sounds like it’s named after someone (like Mrs. Butterworth’s maple syrup, or Francesco Rinaldi Italian foods), there was either no such person or sometimes a completely unrelated person. For example, the Dr. Pepper carbonated drink might be named after an actual doctor, but if so, only because the name sounded good. Apparently it’s considered good marketing practice to name a product or even a whole company so that there’s an implied connection to a founder or an inventor or, well a person. And it’s not just food products either; a few decades ago one of the popular perfumes available in the US and Europe was Prince Matchabelli.
Except for one little detail: Georges Vasili Matchabelli was born in Georgia in 1885 (it was part of Imperial Russia at the time) and he was both an actual prince and the creator of that specific fragrance. Matchabelli was born in Tiflis, on July 23, 1885. He traveled to Berlin to study engineering, and while there was one of the founders of the Committee of Independent Georgia. The group’s goal was to promote German support for Georgia’s independence from Russia.
Between 1917 and about 1921, he served in the Georgian embassy in Italy, and also married Norina Gilli, who at the time was a famous actress. Then in 1921 Soviet rule took over Georgia, and the Matchabellis — who were probably unwelcome thanks to Georges’ work for independence — moved to the United States rather than return to Tiflis.
In addition to being an engineer, Prince Matchabelli was an amateur chemist and perfumer, and in 1924 founded the Prince Matchabelli Perfume Company. He or his wife (or both) designed an iconic bottle shaped like a crown, and Matchabelli created several scents that became quite popular — Princess Norina and Ave Maria were both named for his wife, who was, of course, a princess after their wedding.
Matchabelli continued his advocacy for his homeland while in the US; he was president of the Georgian Association of the US. In 1931 Prince Matchabelli, but not Princess Matchabelli, became a follower of Meher Baba, a spiritual leader who had founded a Sufi-based religion in California. This might have become an issue in their marriage, as the Matchabellis divorced in 1933. Prince Matchabelli died just two years later, at 49, of unknown causes. Princess Matchabelli sold the company the next year.
Prince Matchabelli perfume was selected by General Motors in 1954 as a promotion for the new 1955 Chevrolet car — they gave away over a million bottles. It’s not clear what a perfume had to do with the 1955 Chevy, but free is free, right? The Prince Matchabelli company still exists, but has been sold quite a few times. It’s now owned by Parfums de Coeur, Ltd., which is also known as PDC Brands — and despite what the name might imply, is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut in the US. You can still buy Prince Matchabelli scents created as long ago as 1952, but it’s not clear whether the Prince’s first two formulas — Ave Maria and Princess Norina — are still available. After all, it’s been nearly 100 years.
