BREATH O’ PINE MARKS 59th ANNIVERSARY OF TRADE-MARK NUMBER 409,471
Brand Celebrating 60 th Anniversary, 75 Million Bottles Sold Since September 1943 LaunchTuckahoe, NY – October 16, 2003: Brondow, Inc. today marked another milestone in the company’s 60th Anniversary Breath O’ Pine celebration – which commenced last month with a product donation to Habitat for Humanity – New York City. Fifty-nine years ago - October 10, 1944 - the United States Patent Office issued Brondow Chemical Co. trade-mark number 409,471 protecting the company’s signature Breath O’ Pine pine cleaner/disinfectant*. Invented in the 1920s, Breath O’ Pine has been sold in grocery, hardware and other retail outlets since the 1940s. To date, more than 75 million bottles have been sold in stores throughout the East Coast.
“This year marks a significant achievement in the history of our company,” said Tim Kelley, President of Brondow, Inc. “While many older brands disappear or are swept up and reintroduced by larger companies, Breath O’ Pine is proud of its 60-year heritage and loyal following of consumers. Many of our current customers grew up with Breath O’ Pine when they were kids and now use the product in their own homes. That loyalty and our commitment to delivering quality value-brand products is what has kept us in business.”
Fifty-six years after its incorporation, Brondow is still chaired by members of the Kelley and Farris Families – direct relatives of Breath O’ Pine inventor Edward J. Kelley and co-founder John T. Farris, Sr.
The product that today is known as Breath O’ Pine was developed in the mid-1920s by chemist Edward J. Kelley in the family’s Mt. Vernon, NY home. Made from a combination of high concentration pine oil, soaps and other ingredients, the product was highly effective in dissolving grease, dirt and other heavy stains.
During the late 1920s, Kelley’s product, which he named No Grit, was sold in gas stations as a surface cleaner capable of removing heavy automotive stains and grease from a variety of surfaces. As consumers increasingly became aware of the product’s cleaning, disinfectant and deodorizing power as well as its natural insect repellent properties, No Grit quickly became a hit, attracting the attention of local retailers.
Brondow was founded in 1943 (incorporated in 1947) and No Grit was renamed Breath O’ Pine after numerous Bronx-area grocery and hardware stores began carrying the company’s product.
Sixty years and 75 million bottles later, the Breath O’ Pine line has grown significantly to include the value-brand Clean Pine as well as a complete line of value-brand multipurpose cleaners marketed and distributed under the Clean and Fresh brand names. Brondow has retail distribution throughout the northeast and mid-Atlantic and is the private label pine cleaner manufacturer for Stop & Shop, ShopRite and other major supermarkets.
Additional information about Brondow, Breath O’ Pine or the locations of the many retailers carrying the products is available by calling 914-961-9026, or on the internet at www.breathopine.com.
* Breath O’ Pine is a limited disinfectant against gram-negative intestinal bacteria, including those that commonly cause food poisoning.