Who Sells Breck Shampoo?

Dr. John H. Breck introduced his gentle shampoo in 1930 and his son brought the shining halo of the Breck Girls to the public with a national advertising campaign. Breck shampoo is now available at Dollar Tree.

According to Inc.com, Dr. Breck studied chemistry to find an cure for his impending baldness. Although he didn't find a cure for baldness, the National Museum of American History tells us that Breck introduced the first pH-balanced shampoo to the public in 1930. Shulton Division of American Cyanamid bought Breck's company in 1963 and sold it to Dial Corporation in 1990. Dial then sold it to Dollar Tree in 2006.

Breck shampoo came to the fore when Breck’s son, Edward J. Breck, turned to commercial artist Charles Sheldon. Sheldon introduced the Breck Girl to America in 1936. Changes in management and attempts to update the Breck Girl image to reflect the growing independence of women led to less successful advertising campaigns. Much of the advertising art is now with the National Museum of American History.

The Breck line made shampoo affordable in post-Depression America. Affordability was half the battle. Now Breck used advertising to convince the recovering American public that it was OK to spend money on personal hygiene. Breck shampoo became an industry standard.

The first Breck Girl captured the public’s attention and catapulted artist Sheldon into advertising history. Breck Girls came to represent the dream of the American woman in the 40s and 50s. Glamor crept in during the 60s and 70s when the Breck Girls included Cybil Shepherd, Cheryl Tiegs, Jaclyn Smith, Kim Basinger and Brooke Shields.

Dollar Tree of Chesapeake, Virginia, now owns the Breck product line that includes the shampoo and other Breck bath products. There are Dollar Tree stores in the 48 contiguous states and Dollar Tree also provides a store locator and Internet sales at http://www.dollartree.com.