Dirt Devil is a

brand name A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

originally introduced in 1981 by the Royal Appliance Manufacturing Co, an American

vacuum cleaner A vacuum cleaner, also known simply as a vacuum, is a device that uses suction, and often agitation, in order to remove dirt and other debris from carpets, hard floors, and other surfaces. The dirt is collected into a dust bag or a plastic bin. ...

and floor care company. The company and the brand are now owned by TTI Floor Care North America, a subsidiary of

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

–based

Techtronic Industries Techtronic Industries Company Limited (TTI Group or TTI) is a Hong Kong–based multinational company that designs, produces, and markets power tools, outdoor power equipment, hand tools, and floor care appliances. It pioneered cordless power ...

, who also own Oreck,

Vax VAX (an acronym for virtual address extension) is a series of computers featuring a 32-bit instruction set architecture (ISA) and virtual memory that was developed and sold by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in the late 20th century. The V ...

, and Hoover North America.

Royal Appliance Manufacturing Company

The origins of the Dirt Devil brand can be traced back to a company founded in 1905 as the Royal Appliance Manufacturing Company, selling the 'Royal Sweeper' from premises on Cochran Road in

Solon, Ohio Solon ( ) is a city in southeastern Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 24,262 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A suburb of Cleveland, it is part of the Cleveland metropolitan area. History In 1820, the first ...

. At about the same time Philip Geier started the as "P. A. Geier Co" also in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, and around 1910 when they started building vacuum cleaners he bought the rights to the Royal name. Their first hand-held vacuum cleaner the "Royal Prince" (Model 157) was introduced in 1937, and by 1953 the company was renamed the "Royal Appliance Manufacturing Co", producing vacuum cleaners, mixers, hair dryers, and washing machines. In 1984 Royal introduced the Dirt Devil Hand Vac, to compete as a lower-cost, mass-market alternative to the existing Royal Prince line of all-metal hand vacuums, as well to compete with the Black & Decker DustBuster. Originally bearing the name "Royal Dirt Devil", the company chose to make Dirt Devil the primary brand name, and as such the Dirt Devil line eventually evolved to include more models, including upright vacuum cleaners, most bearing distinctive red plastic cases. In 2003 Royal Appliance Mfg. Co. was sold to

of Hong Kong. Their sub-division TTI Floor Care now also owns Hoover (North America), Oreck, and

Historical products

* Dirt Devil Hand Vac – Introduced in 1984, and selling over 23 million units by 2004. * Dirt Devil Broom Vac (corded) – debuted 1987 * Dirt Devil Broom Vac (cordless, rechargeable)

Slogans

*"Nothing escapes the power of a Dirt Devil" (1995–2005) *"Fight Dirty" (2005–2014) *"Let's Go" (Since 201

The UK company

Dirt Devil products, adapted for UK mains voltage (240v AC), can still be found in limited quantities in some online marketplaces, and second-hand shops, but the Dirt Devil UK website currently (April 2024) offers no products for sale, no office telephone number, and displays an address now occupied by an unrelated company (Screwfix Ltd). Dirt Devil UK was part of Pulse Home Products Ltd, registered as commission agents involved in the sale of furniture, household goods, hardware and ironmongery in the United Kingdom, UK and

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. Pulse (and therefore also Dirt Devil) was under the ownership of

Alba ''Alba'' ( , ) is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is also, in English-language historiography, used to refer to the polity of Picts and Scots united in the ninth century as the Kingdom of Alba, until it developed into the Kingd ...

from 2001 to 2007. Pulse Home Products Ltd entered the voluntary liquidation process on 1 August 2023, and is scheduled for dissolution on 2 June 2024.

References

External links

Official Dirt Devil website

Official Dirt Devil UK website

Official Dirt Devil German website
{{Techtronic Industries Vacuum cleaner manufacturers Electronics companies established in 1905 Home appliance manufacturers of the United States 1905 establishments in Ohio