The French Joseph Bourgeois Aine (born 1830) opened a shop for art supplies in Paris in 1867, which featured a range of specially designed paintboxes. Before that, Bourgeois Aine had invented a process for the production of alizarin lacquer and produced the first non-toxic paints, which were especially suitable for children's paintboxes. His commitment also extended to the school sector, whereby the products were closely linked and advertised with traditional color theory (basic colors, mixing diagrams, color harmony). In 1965 there was a merger with the competitor to Lefranc & Bourgeois, which still exist today.