The Library

Iconic Products

The products that built empires.

12 entries
luxuryfashionproduct

Hermès Birkin Bag

Born from a spilled straw bag on an Air France flight in 1981, the Birkin has appreciated 500% over 35 years,…

Updated Jul 2026
luxuryfashionproduct

Chanel 2.55 & Classic Flap

A handbag designed in 1955 by a woman who grew up in an orphanage, redesigned in 1983 by a man who turned two letters…

Updated Jul 2026
luxurybeautyfragrance

Chanel No. 5

A perfume created in 1921 by a Russian chemist and a French orphan.

Updated Jul 2026
beautycosmeticsproduct

Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk

The lip liner a British makeup artist created in 2013 became the best-selling lipstick in the United States by 2019,…

Updated Jul 2026
beautycosmeticsproduct

Clinique Black Honey

A $21 lip product launched in 1971 sat on shelves for fifty years before TikTok turned it into the most-talked-about…

Updated Jul 2026
beautyproductbranding

Glossier Boy Brow

A wax pomade that named an aesthetic millions of women were already chasing, launched in 2015 at $16, survived its…

Updated Jul 2026
fashionapparelproduct

Levi's 501

A pair of work pants patented in 1873 is still the best-selling jean in the world, worn by gold miners, movie rebels,…

Updated Jul 2026
luxuryfashionbranding

Louis Vuitton Speedy

A handbag introduced in 1930 for the price of a nice lunch that now retails for $1,540 and is the most counterfeited…

Updated Jul 2026
beautycosmeticsproduct

NARS Orgasm Blush

Launched in 1999 with a name no beauty editor could ignore, NARS Orgasm became the best-selling blush in the world and…

Updated Jul 2026
beautycelebrity brandDTC

Rhode Peptide Lip Treatment

A $16 lip gloss launched with two other products in May 2022.

Updated Jul 2026
viralproductbranding

Stanley Quencher

A $45 steel tumbler that was nearly discontinued in 2019.

Updated Jul 2026
beautyproductviral

Dyson Airwrap

A $600 hair tool that launched in 2018 and created months-long waitlists, a multi-billion dollar dupe ecosystem, and a…

Updated Mar 2026