# Culligan > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Culligan > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Culligan.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culligan > Source revision: 1348699969 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Water treatment company}} {{Multiple issues| {{more citations needed|date=November 2008}} {{Advert|date=March 2022}} }} {{Infobox company | name = Culligan International | logo = Culligan Logo 2024.jpg | type = [Private](/source/Privately_held_company) | image = Culligan Office Building Rosemont IL.jpg | foundation = {{start date and age|1936}} | location = [Rosemont, Illinois](/source/Rosemont%2C_Illinois) | founder = Emmett J. Culligan | key_people = Scott Clawson (President & CEO) | shareholder = | num_employees = 14,000 | industry = Water Treatment Products & Service | products = Water and water treatment products | owner = [BDT Capital Partners](/source/BDT_%26_MSD_Partners) And 40% stake with Thomas Culligan Jr of Akron, Ohio | revenue = | net_income = | homepage = }} '''Culligan International''' is a United States based global water treatment company with a network of dealers and direct operations in 90 countries with 1,000 dealers; over 600 in North America alone, and more than 14,000 employees. ==History== thumb|alt=Emmett J. Culligan|left|Emmett J. Culligan Culligan was founded in 1936 by Emmett Culligan. With $50 and with additional financing by his brother Dr. John M. Culligan, and his sister, Anna V. Culligan, Emmett established the Culligan Zeolite Company with his brothers Drs. John and Leo Culligan as partners. They started the business in Jack McLaughlin's Blacksmith Shop at Northbrook, Illinois. Emmett perforated the bottom of a coffee can and used [greensand](/source/greensand_(geology)) to make a water filter. Upon running water through his device, he discovered that the filter acted as a water softener. By 1938, the first Culligan franchised dealership opened in Wheaton, Illinois, followed by another in Hagerstown, Maryland. In 1945, Emmett dissolved the partnership with his brothers and a new company was incorporated. Emmett was president until 1950 when he became chairman of the board and Harold Werhane was made president. In 1962, the name was changed to Culligan, Incorporated. The company now has its international headquarters in Rosemont, Illinois. To date, there are more than 1,000 dealerships and business offices in over 90 countries. For information refer to the company magazine ''Topics'' of July 1970. Later, [Beatrice Foods](/source/Beatrice_Foods) acquired the company. thumb|right In 1986, Beatrice Foods, newly acquired by [Kohlberg Kravis Roberts](/source/Kohlberg_Kravis_Roberts), spun off its specialty foods and non-food brands as [E-II Holdings](/source/Samsonite). E-II attempted to take over [American Brands](/source/Fortune_Brands_(1969%E2%80%932011)) in 1988. Instead, American Brands purchased E-II. American Brands later sold the majority of the E-II brands to [Meshulam Riklis](/source/Meshulam_Riklis). Riklis soon left the company, and E-II filed for bankruptcy in 1992. After a takeover battle from [Carl Icahn](/source/Carl_Icahn), E-II emerged from bankruptcy in 1993 under the name Astrum International. Culligan was spun off in 1995, and Astrum was renamed [Samsonite](/source/Samsonite). Culligan was acquired by United States Filter in 1998.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/10/business/us-filter-in-1.5-billion-deal-for-culligan.html |title=U.S. Filter in $1.5 Billion Deal for Culligan|work=The New York Times |date=10 February 1998 }} US Filter was acquired by [Vivendi](/source/Vivendi) in 1999. Vivendi spun off its water business in 2000, and the resulting company, [Veolia Environnement](/source/Veolia_Environnement), sold Culligan to [Clayton, Dubilier & Rice](/source/Clayton%2C_Dubilier_%26_Rice) in 2003. In 2004, ''[Entrepreneur Magazine](/source/Entrepreneur_Magazine)'' named Culligan the number one franchise in its industry. In 2007, Culligan's headquarters moved from Northbrook, Illinois to in Rosemont, Illinois with the only state-of-the-art analytical laboratory certified by the State of Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to be compliant with National Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Conference standards. [Centerbridge Partners](/source/Centerbridge_Partners) acquired Culligan in 2012.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/culligan-centerbridge-idUSL1E8H4GB420120605 |title=Centerbridge to buy Culligan in debt deal-sources|website=[Reuters](/source/Reuters) |date=5 June 2012 }} In 2021, during a bid to buy out the UK supermarket chain [Morrisons](/source/Morrisons), Culligans accused [Clayton, Dubilier & Rice](/source/Clayton%2C_Dubilier_%26_Rice) of [Asset Stripping](/source/Asset_Stripping), leaving the firm 'saddled with over $850 million of debt',[https://www.nybusinessdivorce.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/94/2020/04/fourth-amended-complaint.pdf ''CULLIGAN SOFT WATER COMPANY v CLAYTON DUBILIER & RICE, LLC'']. FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 03/18/2019. CD&R denied the accusations. In 2021, Culligan was acquired by BDT Capital Partners, LLC.{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2021-08-02/bdt-capital-partners-completes-acquisition-of-culligan-international |title=BDT Capital Partners Completes Acquisition of Culligan International|website=Bloomberg News |date=2 August 2021 }} ==Company slogan== thumb|250px|Culligan delivery truck in Dundee, Michigan with the old advertising slogan Culligan's first known advertisement was in ''[Life](/source/Life_(magazine))'' in 1947.{{cite web|url=https://www.culligan.com/culligan-about-us/history |title= Culligan: A History of Innovation}} From there, they are best known for a television and radio advertisement featuring a housewife yelling out the slogan "Hey, Culligan Man!" in a raucous tone in response to the announcer advising her to "Call your Culligan Man." The campaign was created in 1959 for radio by Dallas Williams Productions of Los Angeles. He played the [straight man](/source/straight_man) in these advertisements, and his wife Jean Hughes Williams provided the shouting voice.{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-04-10-me-7537-story.html|title=Voice of 'Hey, Culligan Man' Radio Ads Dies|date=10 April 1985|publisher=|access-date=25 July 2016|via=LA Times}} Filmmaker Dan Bessie directed and animated the award-winning "Hey, Culligan Man!" soft water commercials for 15 years. Variations of "Hey, Culligan Man!" ads would continue to air for over three decades. In 2018, Culligan launched a North American re-branding campaign, as Culligan Water, during the [Golden Globes](/source/Golden_Globes_2018) with a television advertisement featuring [Cary Elwes](/source/Cary_Elwes). As of January 7, 2018, the slogan "Hey, Culligan Man!"{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-culligan-rebrands-water-business-20180104-story.html|title=Hey, Culligan! Water company dropping 'man' in pitch to millennial consumers|last=Channick|first=Robert|website=chicagotribune.com|date=5 January 2018 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-06}} is now "Hey, Culligan!" in an effort to build "contemporary branding". ==References== {{reflist}} {{Authority control}} Category:Bottled water brands Category:Franchises Category:Private equity portfolio companies Category:Companies based in Cook County, Illinois Category:Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1992 Category:American brands Category:Rosemont, Illinois --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Culligan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culligan) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culligan?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.