Ronseal is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 wood stain

Wood stain

A wood stain consists of a colorant suspended or dissolved in a 'vehicle' or solvent. The suspension agent can be water, alcohol, petroleum distillate, or the actual finishing agent...

 and preservative manufacturer, responsible for the "Does exactly what it says on the tin

Does exactly what it says on the tin

"It does exactly what it says on the tin" was originally an advertising slogan in the United Kingdom, which then became a common idiomatic phrase...

" phrase, an advertising slogan

Advertising slogan

Advertising slogans are short, often memorable phrases used in advertising campaigns. They are claimed to be the most effective means of drawing attention to one or more aspects of a product. A strapline is a British term used as a secondary sentence attached to a brand name...

 created by agency HHCL

HHCL

HHCL was a London based advertising agency prominent in the 1990s. The firm won fame for its innovative working practices and radical approach to marketing communications, and was voted 'Agency of the Decade' by Campaign magazine in 2000...

 which has since entered popular culture

Popular culture

Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...

.

The company, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Sherwin-Williams Company

Sherwin-Williams Company

The Sherwin-Williams Company is an American Fortune 500 company in the general building materials industry. The company primarily engages in the manufacture, distribution, and sale of paints, coatings and related products to professional, industrial, commercial, and retail customers primarily in...

, is based in Chapeltown

Chapeltown, South Yorkshire

Chapeltown is in northern Sheffield, in South Yorkshire, England. It forms part of the Ecclesfield civil parish. There is a wide variety of shops, pubs and restaurants as well as a supermarket...

, Sheffield

Sheffield

Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...

.

History

The original Ronseal products were developed in the 1950s by Ronuk Ltd, a manufacturer of wax polishes and wood stains based in Portslade

Portslade

Portslade is the name of an area of the city of Brighton and Hove, England. Portslade Village, the original settlement a mile inland to the north, was built up in the 16th century...

, Brighton

Brighton

Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...

. Ronuk was purchased by Izal Ltd in 1960, itself owned by the Newton Chamber Group

Newton, Chambers & Company

It was in 1789 that George Newton and Thomas Chambers entered into a partnership that would result in the founding of one of England's largest industrial companies of that era, Newton, Chambers & Co.-History:...

 in Sheffield.

Known as Roncraft, it became a separate sales division of Izal in 1970 and was bought three years later by the Sterling Drug Company.

In 1989, Sterling was bought by Eastman Kodak

Eastman Kodak

Eastman Kodak Company is a multinational imaging and photographic equipment, materials and services company headquarted in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded by George Eastman in 1892....

 until the multinational photographic company sold all of its do it yourself

Do it yourself

Do it yourself is a term used to describe building, modifying, or repairing of something without the aid of experts or professionals...

 business to Forstmann Little & Co. in 1994. The New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

-based investment bank renamed the company to Ronseal Ltd and sold it to Sherwin-Williams in 1997.