Floïd

Floïd is a men's grooming brand built around aftershave, founded in 1932 in Barcelona by the barber Juan Bautista Cendrós Rovira [2]. For most of its history it was a Spanish house, but ownership has changed hands several times, and since 2020 the brand has belonged to the Italian family company Ludovico Martelli S.p.A. [10]. It is best known for a single product type — an alcohol-based, mentholated aftershave lotion tied to the world of the traditional barbershop.

The brand markets itself today as "the aftershave par excellence" and frames its range as a "marriage of past and future, classicism and innovation," extending the original lotion into a wider shaving and body-care line. Following the 2020 acquisition and a 2023 relaunch, Floïd operates as part of Ludovico Martelli's grooming portfolio rather than as an independent company.

Floïd traces back to a Barcelona barbershop called "Buenos Aires," run by Juan Bautista Cendrós Rovira. According to the company, Cendrós "sensed the lack of a product to complete the shaving ritual" and developed an alcohol-based formulation that he applied to customers' faces after a shave. The product first appeared in 1932, a date the brand still carries in its tagline, "The Genuine Since 1932."

The lotion grew out of an existing family business. Cendrós's father had founded the laboratory Haugron Cientifical in Barcelona in 1928, and Floïd was created under that company a few years later [9]. Early on it was positioned as a "genuine vigorous and mentholated massage," before the line expanded into pre-shave oils, foams and related products.

For decades Floïd remained a Spanish brand, but its corporate ownership shifted through a series of acquisitions. In 1996, Haugron Cientifical was sold to The Colomer Group; in 2013, Colomer was itself acquired by Revlon Inc., bringing Floïd under the American cosmetics company [9]. In 2020, Revlon sold the Floïd brand to Ludovico Martelli S.p.A. of Florence [10].

Production and formulation have varied across these eras. Alongside the Spanish line, a separate Italian version was manufactured in Bologna for several decades [7]. After the 2020 acquisition, Ludovico Martelli relaunched Floïd in 2023, reformulating the original aftershave and introducing new lines under the names Citrus Spectre and Vetyver Splash. The brand reached its 90th anniversary in 2022.

Floïd is owned by Ludovico Martelli S.p.A., a family-owned company founded in Florence in 1908 and headquartered in the Fiesole area near Florence [10]. Martelli also owns the shaving brand Proraso, along with Marvis and Kaloderma, placing Floïd within a portfolio of traditional grooming names.

Sources disagree on which company should be named as Floïd's parent, reflecting the timing of the ownership changes. Material predating 2020 lists Revlon as the owner [7], a relationship that held from the 2013 Colomer acquisition until 2020; current Italian sources name Ludovico Martelli, which has owned the brand since the 2020 sale [9][10].

The brand's geographic identity is similarly split. Floïd was founded and long produced in Barcelona, Spain, and is generally treated as Spanish in origin. Its operations are now Italian: the brand site lists a headquarters at Via Faentina in Fiesole, Florence [5].

Floïd presents itself as rooted in the "timeless world of the barbershop," and describes its approach as a complete shaving and body-care system that pairs heritage with updated formulation. The company emphasises craftsmanship and a continuity with traditional barbershop culture, and its vintage-styled glass bottles are part of that positioning.

The brand's central product is its aftershave, sold today as The Genuine and described by the company as "elegant, refined and spicy." The current range also includes Citrus Spectre, built around citrus with patchouli, oakmoss and ambergris, and Vetyver Splash, which combines cedar and bergamot with woody and balsamic notes. Beyond aftershave, the line covers body wash, deodorant, aftershave balm, a transparent shaving gel and bath soap.

Historically, Floïd was sold in distinct variants. The Spanish line included Vigoroso and Suave, the former carrying more menthol and a higher alcohol content, while the Italian line produced in Bologna offered an Amber and a now-discontinued Blue. The post-2023 reformulation centres on what the company calls a "rebalancing and regenerating" formula, citing hero ingredients including Vitamin E, plant-derived polysaccharides, panthenol and vegetable proteins, which it credits with antioxidant, moisturising and soothing properties.

Floïd has been covered chiefly within wet-shaving and traditional-grooming media rather than mainstream beauty press. A review by Tailor & Barber described Floïd Vigoroso as "a true 'old world' barbershop aftershave" and noted its strong, long-lasting "classically Southern European" scent [8]. The original Spanish formula has been characterised as a "cult aftershave," held in a similar regard in Spain and Italy to that of Pitralon in Germany [13].

Floïd is an active brand under acquired ownership. It has been owned by Ludovico Martelli S.p.A. since the 2020 purchase from Revlon, and its most recent significant activity was the 2023 reissue, which introduced reformulated and expanded product lines and is supported by an active e-commerce site [10]. It no longer operates as an independent company.