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The Founding Story of Sherwin-Williams: How Two Paint Guys Covered the Country in Color
Before Sherwin-Williams became an $85 billion industrial paint powerhouse with over 5,000 stores worldwide, it was—quite literally—just two guys mixing paint in a barrel in Cleveland.
There were no tech accelerators.
No private equity rollups.
Just oil-based paints, handshakes, and a belief that color could be a business.
Here’s how it all started.
Sherwin-Williams Origins: 1866, Cleveland, Ohio
Founders:
- Henry Sherwin – a Vermont-born bookkeeper turned paint supplier
- Edward Williams – a paint maker with manufacturing chops
In 1866, shortly after the Civil War, the industrial revolution was reshaping America. Buildings were going up. Railroads were expanding. Cities were growing.
And with it came a big need for something simple but overlooked:
Paint. Durable, protective, and consistent paint.
Henry Sherwin, who had previously worked at a paint and oils firm, believed the industry lacked professionalism, branding, and product reliability. So, he bought into a small Cleveland company—and began what would become Sherwin-Williams & Co.
The Breakthrough: Canned, Ready-to-Use Paint
In the 19th century, if you wanted to paint your house, you had to:
- Buy raw pigments
- Mix with linseed oil
- Add turpentine
- Stir it up yourself—and hope for the best
It was messy. Inconsistent. Dangerous. And not scalable.
So in the 1870s, Sherwin-Williams did something revolutionary:
They created one of the first commercially successful ready-mixed paints.
This meant:
- Consistent quality
- Time-saving for painters
- Paint that could be sold and stored in pre-packaged containers
- The beginning of paint as a branded product, not a commodity
Sherwin-Williams literally invented the concept of paint in a can.
Growth Through Innovation and Branding
From the 1880s through the early 1900s, Sherwin-Williams:
- Introduced mass-produced exterior and interior paint lines
- Opened retail locations to sell directly to contractors and homeowners
- Developed a now-iconic logo: “Cover the Earth”—featuring a paint can pouring red paint over the globe (still in use today)
- Pioneered product naming, durability claims, and quality guarantees
They weren’t just selling paint—they were building a brand empire decades before branding was a formal discipline.
Sherwin-Williams Becomes a National Force
By the mid-20th century, Sherwin-Williams was:
- One of the largest coatings manufacturers in the U.S.
- Selling to homeowners, contractors, factories, naval shipyards, and auto plants
- Constantly innovating with water-based paints, enamel technology, and protective coatings
And the business model stayed durable:
- Make the product
- Control the supply chain
- Sell through owned stores
- Build customer loyalty across generations
From Legacy Brand to Global Coatings Powerhouse
Today, Sherwin-Williams is:
- A global leader in architectural, industrial, automotive, and marine coatings
- The owner of brands like Valspar, Dutch Boy, Krylon, Thompson’s WaterSeal, and Minwax
- Famous for its store dominance (5,000+ U.S. locations) and tight contractor relationships
And while it may not seem like a tech unicorn, Sherwin-Williams has quietly been one of the best-performing stocks of the past 50 years—thanks to its moat, margins, and masterful pricing power.
My Takeaway
Sherwin-Williams didn’t start in Silicon Valley.
It didn’t rely on algorithms.
It didn’t need venture funding.
It just solved a real problem—making paint easier, better, and more reliable—and scaled like hell for over 150 years.
It’s the ultimate case study in:
- Vertical integration
- Distribution control
- Relentless product refinement
- And turning a boring industrial necessity into a generational compounder
If you’re an entrepreneur looking for a business that lasts?
Study Sherwin-Williams.
Because there’s nothing boring about a paint company when it covers the earth.
DISCLAIMER: This analysis of the aforementioned stock security is in no way to be construed, understood, or seen as formal, professional, or any other form of investment advice. We are simply expressing our opinions regarding a publicly traded entity.
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