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| In 1953, a fledgling company called Rocket Chemical Company and its staff of three set out to create a line of rust-prevention solvents and degreasers for use in the aerospace industry, in a small lab in San Diego, California. It took them 40 attempts to get the water displacing formula worked out. But they obviously got it right, because the original secret formula for WD-40 which stands for Water Displacement perfected on the 40th try is still in use today. Convair, an aerospace contractor, first used WD-40 to protect the outer skin of the Atlas Missile from rust and corrosion. The product actually worked so well that several employees snuck some WD-40 cans out of the plant to use at home. A few years following WD-40's first industrial use, Rocket Chemical Company founder Norm Larsen experimented with putting WD-40 into aerosol cans, reasoning that consumers might find a use for the product at home as some of the employees had. |
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The product made its first appearance on store shelves in San Diego in 1958. In 1960 the company nearly doubled in size, growing to seven people, who sold an average of 45 cases per day from the trunk of their cars to hardware and sporting goods stores in the San Diego area. In 1961 the first full truckload order for WD-40 was filled when employees came in on a Saturday to produce additional concentrate to meet the disaster needs of the victims of hurricane Carla along the U.S. Gulf coast. WD-40 was used to recondition flood and rain damaged vehicles and equipment. Then, in 1969 the company was renamed after its only product, WD-40. Since that time, WD-40 has grown by leaps and bounds, and is now virtually a household name, used in numerous consumer and industrial markets such as automotive, manufacturing, sporting goods, aviation, hardware, home improvement, construction, and farming. |
| Over the years, thousands of WD-40 users have written testimonial letters to the company sharing their often unique, if sometimes just plain weird, uses for the product. Some of the most interesting stories include the bus driver in Asia who used WD-40 to remove a python snake which had coiled itself around the undercarriage of his bus. Or when police officers used WD-40 to remove a naked burglar trapped in an air conditioning vent. In December 1995, WD-40 Company acquired the 100-year-old brand 3-IN-ONE Oil from Reckitt & Coleman. 3-IN-ONE, with its precise applicator spout, made a wonderful match for WD-40. In May 1999, WD-40 Company added to its brands when it acquired and launched Lava in the UK, from Block Drug Company. Lava is the most famous brand of heavy-duty hand cleaner in the U.S. In 1999 WD-40 Company added to its 3-IN-ONE product line a new delivery system, the Telescoping Spout. Reminiscent of an old-time oilcan, the plastic bottle comes with a five-inch extendable spout designed to get at hard-to-reach places. Since those early days of the space race and workers sneaking WD-40 out of the shop, WD-40 Company has grown to more than 200 employees worldwide. The Corporate Brand Support Centre and manufacturing site has expanded to include two strategic account offices in the United States, and wholly-owned subsidiaries in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, as well as offices in Europe and Asia. WD-40 Company products are now sold in more than 187 countries around the world. |
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In the UK WD-40 has a fantastic following, with celebrities such as Handy Andy using WD-40 to solve all of their DIY and gardening problems. |
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