Domestos

Domestos is a powerful, quick-acting bleach. It was launched in the UK in the 1920s and was sold door-to-door by salesmen on bicycles. At that time, it was used in the home as a solution to whiten cotton and household surfaces, and salesmen were assigned to do live demos. Today Domestos is sold all over the world. The brand is active in its sustainability work to extend access to toilets in disadvantaged parts of the world.

That's because Domestos has the lasting power to eradicate all known germs.

The Domestos range offers people peace of mind when tackling germs, and responsible advice for establishing sensible home hygiene regimes. From its original incarnation as liquid bleach, the brand has been extended and developed to offer a variety of products and fresh fragrances.

Domestos originated from the Newcastle garden shed of William Handley, a 25 year-old dental mechanic. He bought sodium hypochlorite from ICI Billingham and sold the solution from 1929 as a steriliser, drain cleaner and even a treatment for sore feet! The product was sold door-to-door in large stoneware jars that were refilled by salesmen with special bicycle and hand carts. The bleach was sold as an 'all purpose cleaner' but also had other uses such as to 'sweeten' drains. At the outbreak of World War II stocks increased as the product was used as a treatment for burns.

In 1952 Domestos was sold through retail outlets and distributed nationally where the slogan "kills all known germs dead" was first coined. During this time Domestos became proactively involved in health education. It ran a campaign to encourage polio vaccination, gaining official endorsement from the Institute of Public Health and Hygiene.

Domestos was acquired by Unilever in 1961. In 1969 the Domestos Hygiene Advisory service was formed – a first for customer service care.

The new millennium saw the launch of Domestos Oxygen bleach and the 'thickest ever bleach' in 2003 and in 2004 Domestos unveiled a bold new Pink Power bleach to give shoppers even greater choice. In 2005, Domestos Aqua Blast is launched.

Since 2005, Domestos has launched four new products in the UK. The first of these innovations, in 2005, was Domestos Sink & Pipe Unblocker followed in 2008 by Domestos Grotbuster and Domestos Zero Limescale.

In 2011 Domestos introduced a new range of toilet cleaning products, to give the consumer a Total Toilet Cleaning System. The range includes Total Blast Toilet Gel, Germ Blaster Rim Blocks – the only blocks to kill germs as they freshen, and an additional Zero Limescale variant. Blast, Kill, Protect.

More recently, Domestos has introduced Domestos Extended Germ-Kill Bleach, a re-launch of its thick bleach range, with a new formula so it keeps on killing germs even after the flush. Nothing protects as long*. Domestos, Kills All Known Germs Dead.

*The improved formula gives you long lasting germ kill in the toilet.

In January 2013, Domestos extended its Total Toilet System range by introducing new Domestos Toilet wipes. With this new launch, Domestos has become the ONLY Brand able to offer a full range of toilet cleaning expertise to consumers. Domestos Toilet Wipes are the easiest and most convenient way to keep toilets clean whilst fighting germs.

In 2012, Domestos, as a trusted brand in home sanitation, partnered with UNICEF to improve access to toilets in communities that need it most. As part of this partnership, consumers were given the opportunity to contribute by purchasing specially marked bottles of Domestos in the UK and Ireland. In 2016, Domestos UK donated over £500k to Unicef through the sales of its special Domestos packs.