MICHIGAN MAKES IT: Doozy Cleaning Products

Every autumn I find myself diving deeply into clean the house mode.  I suppose it's because, like many of you, I know I'll be spending much more time inside my home as the temperature drops so it's a great time to freshen everything up, and to tackle neglected projects.

This fall one of my projects involves cleaning some old wooden furniture.  As has long been the case, I've turned to Doozy Cleaning Products for help.  The staple of the line, Doozy Polish, was originally developed by a local chemist here in Michigan back in 1955.  When he took it home to show his wife how it worked, she told him it was "a doozy of a product," and the brand was born.

Eventually the polish found a loyal fan in Farmington Hills furniture refinisher, Steve Blachford.  He was so fond of the product that he made arrangements to take over production when the inventor decided to retire.  

In the beginning, each bottle of Doozy Polish was filled by hand.  Eventually, as demand increased, Blachford purchased a production tank and filling system.  The company at the time was operating out of the site of Blachford's long-standing furniture refurbishing business, Mr. Furniture Finisher.

Finding additional needs for related products, Blachford also created Doozy Pre Cleaner as an answer for challenges like cleaning sticky build-up on kitchen cabinets.  Eventually several stores started carrying the popular duo of products and in January of 2008 Doozy moved its production to a 2,400 square foot facility of it’s own.

In 2009, the line saw further expansion with the addition of Doozy Multi Surface to address the many hard-surface finishes found in homes today.  While the brand has grown, it has stayed true to its roots.  All Doozy products are water-based and nontoxic AND made in Michigan.  In fact, as of 2011, production has been outsourced to Auburn Hills-based Greenbladtz to keep up with increasing demand.  

These days Doozy Cleaning Products can be found in numerous retailers throughout the country, including many Michigan-based stores like ACO Hardware, Hiller's Markets, Gill-Roy's Hardware, and many more.  To try the line out for yourself, FIND A STORE NEAR YOU or ORDER ONLINE.

As for me, I'm done with the pre-cleaning, next up is a polish, and my grandmother's dining room chairs will be looking quite fine again.