Noxzema
Noxzema is an American skin-care brand best known for its mentholated facial cleanser and distinctive blue packaging.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
Noxzema is an American skin-care brand associated with a distinctive blue jar, a cooling mentholated sensation, and a facial-cleansing cream that has been sold in the United States since the early twentieth century. The product began as a treatment for sunburn rather than as a conventional beauty cleanser. Physician and druggist Francis J. Townsend developed an early formula known as Townsend R22 while practicing in Maryland, where exposure to strong coastal sunlight created demand for remedies for severely burned skin. The formula was later passed to druggist George Avery Bunting, who began commercial production around 1917 under the name Dr. Bunting’s Sunburn Remedy. The brand’s familiar name is generally associated with a customer’s enthusiastic response that the cream had effectively “knocked” eczema out, although the precise wording and circumstances of the naming story are part of the brand’s traditional history rather than a separately documented corporate event. Noxzema was positioned as an alternative to heavy, tallow-based medicated creams. Its cooling effect came from ingredients including camphor, menthol, phenol, and eucalyptus. The cream could be applied to sunburned, chapped, or irritated skin and was also used as a facial cleanser, makeup remover, and blemish treatment. It is commonly described as a cold cream or vanishing cream because it appears to disappear after being left on the skin for several minutes. Commercial production expanded through the Noxzema Chemical Company. A factory was established in Baltimore in 1926, and the company applied for a U.S. trademark that year. By 1937, reported annual sales had reached approximately 15 million units. During the 1940s the product became available throughout the United States, supported by radio, print, and locally handled advertising. The original cream was packaged for decades in a small cobalt-blue glass jar, an unusually recognizable visual asset that remained central to the brand even after packaging shifted to blue plastic. The Bunting family continued to control the business for much of its early history. Management passed to the founder’s son in 1949. In 1966, the company was reorganized as Noxell Corporation, while remaining under Bunting-family ownership; it later moved its headquarters to Cockeysville, Maryland. Noxzema also expanded beyond its original cream. The name was applied to shaving cream, razors, and skin-cleansing cloths, making the brand relevant to both facial care and shaving routines. Ownership subsequently moved through several major consumer-goods companies. Procter & Gamble acquired Noxzema in 1989 as part of its purchase of Noxell. Procter & Gamble sold the brand rights to Alberto-Culver in 2008, and Unilever acquired Alberto-Culver in 2010. The brand’s ownership history has therefore involved a succession of specialist and multinational consumer-products companies rather than a single continuous operating company. In Greece, the local brand business changed hands from Procter & Gamble to Sarantis in October 2014 in a reported transaction valued at €8.7 million. Noxzema’s advertising history includes a prominent shaving-cream campaign featuring model Gunilla Knutsson in national television commercials and magazine advertising from 1966 to 1973. Her “Take it off. Take it all off.” line became closely associated with the brand’s shaving products. In the late 1990s, Procter & Gamble experimented with nontraditional media and targeted communications to stimulate sales of Noxzema skin cream among women aged 21 and over. Product-line extensions were introduced and promoted around 1999. The brand is now marketed by Evermark, with its heritage product continuing to connect medicinal origins, cooling sensory cues, and everyday facial cleansing.
History
Noxzema’s history began on Maryland’s Atlantic coast, where physician and druggist Francis J. Townsend developed a topical formula for people suffering severe sunburn. Townsend’s early preparation was known as Townsend R22. Around the 1910s, he practiced in Snow Hill, Berlin, and Ocean City, Maryland, and the coastal setting gave him regular exposure to patients affected by intense ultraviolet sunlight. The formula was later provided to druggist George Avery Bunting. Around 1917, Bunting began making the preparation commercially. It was initially sold as Dr. Bunting’s Sunburn Remedy and promoted as a less greasy alternative to the heavy tallow-based creams then used for medicated skin care. During the first several years, Bunting and Elizabeth Buck reportedly performed the manufacturing work themselves, including mixing, heating, and pouring the cream. The name Noxzema was adopted during this early commercial period. Brand lore connects the name with a customer’s enthusiastic claim that the product had “knocked” eczema out, and the product was also promoted with the phrase “the miracle cream of Baltimore.” In 1920, Bunting was producing the cream on a more established basis. The Noxzema Chemical Company expanded its manufacturing infrastructure and broke ground on a Baltimore factory in 1926. That year, the company also applied for a U.S. trademark. Distribution widened steadily, and by 1937 the company was reported to be selling 15 million units annually. By the 1940s, Noxzema was distributed nationally in the United States, with advertising appearing in radio and print media. Much of the early advertising was managed locally rather than through a single national program. The Bunting family retained ownership through the brand’s formative decades. Leadership moved to the founder’s son in 1949. In 1966, the business was reorganized as Noxell Corporation. Although still controlled by the Bunting family at that point, the reorganized company later moved its headquarters to a complex in Cockeysville, Maryland, reflecting the transition from a small regional manufacturer to a larger skin-care company. Noxzema’s traditional presentation—a small cobalt-blue jar—became one of its strongest identifiers. The brand’s core cream was initially associated with sunburn relief but developed into a multipurpose personal-care product. It was used as a facial cleanser and makeup remover and was also marketed for blemishes, chapped skin, and other irritation. Its sensory profile was shaped by ingredients such as camphor, menthol, phenol, and eucalyptus. The brand name was later extended to shaving cream, razors, and cleansing cloths, broadening its presence from treatment-oriented skin care into grooming. Noxzema became especially visible through shaving advertising. From 1966 to 1973, Gunilla Knutsson appeared in national television and magazine advertisements for Noxzema shaving cream. Her “Take it off. Take it all off.” line became a defining piece of the brand’s advertising history. In 1998, Procter & Gamble pursued nontraditional media as a way to depart from conventional Noxzema advertising and stimulate skin-cream sales among women aged 21 and older. Product extensions were introduced and advertised in 1999. Corporate ownership changed repeatedly in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Procter & Gamble acquired the brand in 1989 through its acquisition of Noxell. In 2008, Alberto-Culver purchased the rights from Procter & Gamble. Unilever then acquired Alberto-Culver in 2010. A separate market development occurred in Greece in 2014, when Sarantis purchased the Greek Noxzema business from Procter & Gamble for a reported €8.7 million. The brand is currently marketed by Evermark. Its long-running identity remains based on the original cooling cleansing cream, blue packaging, and heritage positioning at the intersection of skin care and everyday cleansing.
- 2014
Greek business transferred to Sarantis
[1]Sarantis acquired the Noxzema business in Greece from Procter & Gamble in a reported €8.7 million transaction.
- 2010
Unilever acquires Alberto-Culver
[1]Unilever acquired Alberto-Culver, including its Noxzema interests.
- 2008
Alberto-Culver acquires brand rights
[1]Alberto-Culver purchased Noxzema rights from Procter & Gamble.
- 1989
Procter & Gamble acquisition
[1]Procter & Gamble acquired Noxell, including the Noxzema brand.
- 1966
Reorganization as Noxell Corporation
[1]The company was reorganized as Noxell Corporation and later relocated its headquarters to Cockeysville, Maryland.
- 1966
Gunilla Knutsson advertising campaign begins
[1]Gunilla Knutsson began appearing in national Noxzema shaving-cream advertising.
- 1949
Leadership passes to the founder’s son
[1]Management of the family business passed to George Bunting’s son.
- 1937
Reported annual sales reach 15 million units
[1]The company was reported to be selling approximately 15 million units annually.
- 1926
Baltimore factory and trademark application
[1]Noxzema Chemical Company established a Baltimore factory and applied for a U.S. trademark.
- 1917
Bunting begins commercial production
[1]George Avery Bunting began producing and selling the preparation as Dr. Bunting’s Sunburn Remedy.
Products and positioning
Accessible heritage skin care built around a cooling, medicated-style cleansing experience, recognizable blue packaging, and a traditional formula associated with camphor, menthol, phenol, and eucalyptus.
Facial cleanser · 1914
Original Noxzema cleansing cream
The brand’s signature product is a cooling cream used as a facial cleanser and makeup remover. Historically it was also associated with sunburn relief and soothing chapped or irritated skin. Its characteristic sensory profile comes from ingredients including camphor, menthol, phenol, and eucalyptus, and its traditional cobalt-blue jar became a central part of the product’s recognition.
Shaving
Noxzema shaving cream
Noxzema extended its name into shaving cream, including aerosol shaving products promoted through national advertising. The shaving line broadened the brand from facial treatment and cleansing into everyday grooming and became the subject of the highly recognizable Gunilla Knutsson campaign during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Shaving
Noxzema razors
Razors were among the grooming products sold under the Noxzema name as the brand expanded beyond its original cream. Specific models, launch dates, and current availability are not established in the supplied sources.
Facial cleansing
Noxzema cleansing cloths
Cleansing cloths represented a later line extension using the Noxzema name for a more convenient facial-cleansing format. The supplied sources do not specify the precise launch date or current market availability.
Marketing campaigns
- 1999Noxzema product-extension advertising
United States
Noxzema product-line extensions were introduced and advertised as part of the brand’s late-1990s expansion beyond its core cream.
Outcome. The brand continued to develop adjacent skin-care and grooming offerings.
- 1998Nontraditional media initiative
United States
Procter & Gamble introduced a nontraditional-media initiative intended to move beyond conventional Noxzema advertising and stimulate skin-cream sales among women aged 21 and over.
Outcome. The initiative supported a broader effort to refresh the brand’s communications.
- 1966Gunilla Knutsson shaving campaign
United States
Noxzema used model Gunilla Knutsson in national television commercials and magazine advertisements for shaving cream. The campaign’s “Take it off. Take it all off.” line became one of the brand’s best-known advertising associations.
Outcome. The campaign became a notable part of Noxzema’s advertising identity.
Brand decisions
2014
Transfer of the Greek Noxzema business to SarantisM&ABackground
The Greek Noxzema business was separated from its prior ownership by Procter & Gamble.
Action taken
Sarantis acquired the Noxzema brand business in Greece.
Aftermath
Sarantis became the domestic owner of the brand in Greece.
Reported transaction value. €8.7 million (October 2014)
2008
Sale of Noxzema rights to Alberto-CulverM&ABackground
Procter & Gamble transferred the brand rights after holding Noxzema since its acquisition of Noxell.
Action taken
Alberto-Culver purchased the rights to Noxzema from Procter & Gamble.
Aftermath
The brand later became part of Unilever through its acquisition of Alberto-Culver in 2010.
1989
Procter & Gamble acquires NoxellM&ABackground
Noxell had developed Noxzema from a family-controlled business into a larger skin-care company.
Action taken
Procter & Gamble acquired Noxell and added Noxzema to its consumer-brand portfolio.
Aftermath
Noxzema operated under Procter & Gamble ownership until rights were sold to Alberto-Culver in 2008.
Recent events
- 2014
Sarantis takes ownership of Noxzema in Greece[1]
M&A
The Noxzema business in Greece changed ownership from Procter & Gamble to domestic company Sarantis in a reported transaction valued at €8.7 million.
- 2010
Unilever acquires Alberto-Culver[1]
M&A
Unilever acquired Alberto-Culver, indirectly bringing Noxzema under Unilever ownership in markets covered by the transaction.
- 2008
Alberto-Culver buys Noxzema rights from Procter & Gamble[1]
M&A
The Noxzema brand rights were sold by Procter & Gamble to Alberto-Culver.
- 1989
Procter & Gamble acquires Noxell and the Noxzema brand[1]
M&A
Procter & Gamble acquired Noxell Corporation, bringing Noxzema into its portfolio of consumer brands.
Sources1 sources
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