CHICAGO — Beginning this month, American Drycleaner will profile a manufacturer, distributor or other business that serves the drycleaning industry. The magazine shines its spotlight this month on A. L. Wilson Chemical Co., Kearny, N.J., a longtime maker of stain removal agents. Owners are Fred Schwarzmann and Randy Schwarzmann.
Q: How long has your business been serving the drycleaning industry?
A. L. Wilson Chemical Co. has been manufacturing stain removers of unsurpassed quality for more than 85 years. From the beginning, Wilson spotters have been great tools for dry cleaners and launderers who accept the challenge to deliver the quality garments and linens that their customers are looking for. Wilson stain removers allow them to remove more stains completely and safely.
In 1928, when Wilson Chemical was founded, the art of stain removal was in its infancy. In that year, Aura L. Wilson, a successful spotter, decided to bottle his effective formulas and sell them to friends in the industry. Two years later, John Schwarzmann saw the potential in Wilson’s idea, joined the company and launched it on its current path. His philosophy was simple: Wilson products must be not only the most effective at removing stains but also the safest for delicate fabrics and colors. It’s a business philosophy that has endured for four generations.
Recent research and development has resulted in many new products that not only provide high levels of performance but also address the environmental concerns that have surfaced in recent years. Without compromising effectiveness, Wilson’s newly developed products are designed to be safer for workers and the environment.
Our manufacturing philosophy has not changed in more than 85 years. We continue to manufacture high-performance, high-value stain removers that contribute to the success of the cleaners and launderers who use them. We supply valuable tools that let our customers deliver the quality stain removal that their customers desire. Our customers know they can count on Wilson spotters to help them earn a spotless reputation and keep their customers coming back.
Q: Tell our audience, generally, about your company’s current product and/or service offerings.
Wilson Chemical makes stain removers that are effective and eco-friendly; chlorinated solvent free; California compliant; aligned with alternative solvents; and physically safer.
Q: Where are your company’s products made, and how are they sold or distributed to end-users?
Wilson Chemical designs, manufactures and markets our stain removal agents at our facility in Kearny, N.J., USA, and sells them through distributors to professional dry cleaners and launderers around the world.
Q: Why is your company successful?
Our products are effective, worker-friendly and eco-friendly. And our customer service and support are equally valuable to our customers. From the lab, through manufacturing, the office staff and out into the field, we focus not only on helping our customers remove more stains safely and completely, but also on helping them protect their business from environmental and regulatory nightmares.
Q: How does your company keep up with the industry to ensure it is offering the products and/or services that potential customers want or need?
Every day, our regional vice presidents are in the field, interacting with dry cleaners and launderers, keeping their fingers on the pulse of the industry.
We actively participate in industry trade associations such as the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute, the National Cleaners Association, and the Textile Care Allied Trades Association.
We constantly monitor national and local regulatory agencies to ensure ongoing product compliance. For example, the new OSHA [Occupational Safety & Health Administration] GHS Hazard Communication Standard requires all workplace chemicals to be properly labeled with pictograms, signal words, hazard statements, etc. by June 1, 2016. As of June 1, 2015, every container leaving Wilson Chemical has been compliant with this new Standard.
Q: What do you think will change about the drycleaning industry in the next five years?
Existing environmental and worker safety regulations will inevitably continue to tighten and will spread from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. At the same time, new, more stringent regulations will be added. Consider that the U.S. EPA [Environmental Protection Agency] is now threatening to ban traditional POGs and VDS nationwide. Ultimately, all dry cleaners will be operating in a hyper-regulated environment and will need to become more environmentally conscious.
At first glance, this might appear to be unrelentingly bad news. But consider what is happening today in California. There is a silver lining hidden in this regulatory storm that appears to be threatening our industry. Yes, perc is being driven from the market, but partially as a result of these regulations, environmentally friendly alternative solvents have been developed that allow dry cleaners to continue to offer the high-quality cleaning their customers desire.
On a parallel track, many manufacturers of stain removers have responded to the ban on the sale of traditional POGs and VDS in California, and have developed alternative stain removers that meet or exceed the current strict environmental restrictions without sacrificing effectiveness or garment safety.
The choice dry cleaners face today, both inside and outside California, is either to comply reactively as current regulations tighten and new ones come on line, or to gain a competitive advantage by embracing their inevitably more environmentally friendly future today.
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Dave Davis at [email protected].