February Business Spotlight - The History of Jiffy Steamer Company

This company's story starts with the son of a sharecropper that hitched a ride on a freight train from Tennessee to Chicago as a 14 year old seeking employment. This type of determination would go a long ways in the founder's life as he applied his willpower to care for his family. In 1940, John Bailey Simrell and his brother-in-law toiled over a way to create enough steam to commercially shape and block hats quickly and easily. The birth of the Jiffy Model J-1 resulted from those efforts as well as dozens of models to follow over the decades. When Mr. John added a hose and steam head attachment, the product morphed into a fabric steamer that removed wrinkles from clothing, draperies and other materials.

jiffy-group-pictureMore than seven decades and many product developments later, Jiffy Steamer Company is a worldwide leader in steaming equipment serving a multitude of industries. Sold in 53 foreign markets and backed by over 1,000 dealers globally, Jiffy® Steamer models can be found almost everywhere-from the commercial garment trade, to residential markets, to various specialty industrial markets. The company's offerings also include the following divisions:

steambladeThe SteamBlade is an innovative product designed to simplify the removal of window film, vinyl wrap and lettering. With the swipe of the SteamBlade, the warm, moist steam quickly and safely unbinds the glue from the window, simplifying this once tedious task. The SteamBlade will allow you to remove window film, vinyl wrap or lettering in a fraction of the time of conventional methods. Put down the razor and reach for the Steam. Read more at www.steamblade.com

x-seriesWith the fast, effective power of pure steam, the Jiffy® Steamer X-Series steamer easily kills dust mites and bed bugs on contact without the use of a single chemical or fumigation product. Best of all, it's safe for your family and the environment. Read more at www.jiffyxseries.com

steambreakerThe SteamBreaker is an innovative product that safely breaks in leather and exotic skin footwear, quickly creating a custom fit for your feet. Say goodbye to the pain of breaking in a new pair of footwear-and let the power of steam do the work for you! Read more at www.steambreaker.com

flexinebFlexineb™ equine nebulization device represents a huge innovative step in administrating care to the lower and upper respiratory tract of the horse via inhalation methods. Read more at www.flexineb.us

gloveflexAn average fielder's glove requires approximately 1,500 pitches to be considered broken in and a catcher's mitt needs around 2,500. The number of hours shaping and forming your glove will be drastically reduced using our GloveFlex process. Your glove will be returned to you softer, more flexible and ready to play ball. Read more at www.gloveflex.com

jiffy-in-the-worldEven though Jiffy® Steamer's products can be found around the world, the company stands firm in its promise to remain American-made. Each of the company's steamers is handcrafted in Union City, Tennessee and assembled with the finest, American-made components. The company makes no compromise in the engineering and construction of its products. After the intricate 52 step process to build the unit, every unit is steam tested before leaving the factory. Family values ring true with the Jiffy® Steamer brand and the company is actively managed and operated by family members. You may learn more about Jiffy Steamer by visiting www.poweredbyjiffy.com.