NEW YORK— The cleaning tool segment saw some significant acquisitions and partnerships develop this year. Counting on the growing consumer preference for healthy living, vendors looked to enter the category or expand their cleaning tool product assortments to additional markets in the U.S.
Vendors also expanded their digital marketing efforts and consumer educational initiatives. Trends in product development focused on task-specific, easy to use cleaning tools for the home, kitchen and bath.
Moving & Shaking
• Bradshaw International purchased Casabella Holdings. Founded by Bruce Kaminstein, the brand will continue to be based in the New York area. Kaminstein joined the Bradshaw management team and continues to run Casabella as its founder and managing director.
• Freudenberg, parent company of cleaning brand O-Cedar, signed an agreement to acquire the Playtex Gloves business from Edgewell Personal Care.
Product Pipeline
• Kitchen tools and gadgets developer Dreamfarm entered the cleaning category with its Spindry toilet brush. The tool is said to hygienically dry its bristles with a spinning action.
• Black + Decker introduced a new line of powered kitchen and bathroom scrubbers, which included the GrimeBuster and GrimeBuster Pro. The scrubbers are suitable for cleaning kitchen surfaces, dirty pots and pans, sinks, microwaves and more.
• Butler Home Products launched a new line of lint rollers under its Evercare brand, Lint Flip, in addition to new cleaning tools under its licensed Dawn, Clorox and Black + Decker lines. The company launched the 2-in-1 scrub brush under its licensed Clorox line and Scrubtastic scrubber sponge under its licensed Dawn brand. Under its licensed line of Black + Decker floor care tools, the company also launched a new spin mop.
• Casabella launched several new floor care and cleaning tools including its floor duster and sweeper, OxiClean Splot, continuous spray mop and performance dispensing bottle brush and Sink Sider solo and duo soap dispensers. The company also expanded its Basics line with the Basics upright sweep, flexible floor duster and ratchet roller mop.
• Better Living Products introduced the Looeegee hygienic toilet squeegee, which is said to offer a more hygienic clean while removing stains with less scrubbing.