Aveda manufactures skin and body care, cosmetics, perfume (internally called "pure-fume"), hair color, and hair care products, and trains students in cosmetology, massage, and esthiology at the Aveda Institutes in Minneapolis, New York City, Des Moines, Washington, D.C., Maryland, Orlando, Denver, Winnipeg, and many other cities.

Horst formulated the first product, a clove shampoo, in his kitchen sink with help from Ayurvedic doctors - Vinod and Kusum Upadhyay.

[4][5] Upon selling the product to Estee Lauder Companies Inc., Horst also sold off the chain of salons to his successor, David Wagner.

In 2009, Aveda (as a subsidiary of Estée Lauder Companies Inc.) was included by the BDS campaign as one of the "Top Ten Brands to Boycott This Christmas" because "This company’s chairman Ronald Lauder is also the chairman of the Jewish National Fund..."[7] In 2011 Aveda was slammed at Park City, Utah, during the Evolution of Women in Social Media conference, also known as evo'11, for announcing their no-payment policy for bloggers reviewing their products.

[9][10] Through a partnership with Native, A Public Benefit Corporation, Aveda has helped fund wind turbines.