The Chem-Dry Story

As a young man working his way through law school in the early 1970's, Robert Harris was impressed by watching an airline stewardess remove a stain with carbonated water. Robert wondered whether that same simple idea would work to clean carpets. His research stretched into years and years of studying the chemical properties of cleaning formulas and backbreaking experiments, which required cleaning areas of dirty carpets with one formula and then another.

Eventually, he found his formula, a revolutionary carbonated solution that not only cleaned beautifully, but was also safe and non-toxic. With the birth of Chem-Dry came self-employment and success. The demand for his cleaning services mushroomed and soon friends and family clamored for his secret. From the first small group of franchises, the Chem-Dry network has grown to thousands of successful franchises around the world. As the Chem-Dry family increases, Robert Harris has seen his own success story repeated by many franchisees.

Now, after more than 30 years, Chem-Dry has become the #1 Carpet Cleaning Company in America! In 2006, Chem-Dry was purchased by The Home Depot, forming a partnership between the world's largest carpet retailer and the world's largest carpet cleaning company. With the outstanding leadership of our President, Craig Donaldson, and our Executive Team, Chem-Dry continues to lead the industry.