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Wipe Out Fear of Germs
2XL cleans up in the gym BY KATHRYN KORCHOK
WHO: 2XL Corporation is a privately- held company that was founded and is currently owned and operated by a husband and wife team, the creators of the first GymWipes and CareWipes products. Because they were deter- mined to be excellent at what they were doing, they named the company with a play on the words “to excel.”
WHAT: 2XL is a leading manufacturer of cleaning, maintenance and wellness products for fitness, spa, healthcare, food service (including restaurants, grocery and retail stores), education, military, garages, manufacturing, jani- torial services, concerts, workplaces, the hospitality industry (every Hilton worldwide carried 2XL products) and consumer environments. 2XL makes and distributes antibacterial and sani- tizing wipes and related products, such as stands, dispensers and foams. It prides itself on manufacturing its products in the U.S.A.
WHEN: The company was founded
in 1997 and has since grown to more than 20 employees. The original prod- uct was an 80-count container called “Quikee GymWipes,” which sold for $35 at small trade shows. The company grew through word of mouth, visits to fitness centres, small-scale advertising and direct mailing. A year later, a large container of GymWipes/CareWipes with 600 wet wipes was developed as a fitness industry first and was intro- duced at a large trade show in Florida. Today, with more than 25 main prod- ucts, the company is a multi-million dollar operation with global sales and distribution.
WHERE: Headquarters is in Forest Park (near Chicago), Illinois. Additional locations are in California and Utah.
WHY: With their business and ac- counting backgrounds, the duo origi- nally created and sold a product to clean laser printers and fax machines. They then imported a European prod- uct used to clean and wipe phones and keyboards. Combining that idea with a cleaning product long used in the dairy in- dustry, and responding to a gym member’s inqui- ry about keeping fitness equipment clean in a safe and non-toxic way, the pair had its “aha” moment and GymWipes was born. “A lot of innovation has
come from feedback from our customers,” says com- pany spokesperson Linda Giammanco. She points out that in
Product awaits shipping out of 2XL’s 75,000 sqſt warehouse in Forest Park, Illinois.
24 Fitness Business Canada September/October 2017
the fitness field GymWipes outperform sprays, which require the user to also use a paper towel. And sprays can damage expensive
cables, glides and electronics. Also, be- cause GymWipes are non-toxic, non- irritating and non-abrasive, they are as safe to use on vinyl, metal, rubber, upholstery and LCD/plasma screens as they are on skin. Giammanco notes that 2XL has re-
cently responded to the medical in- dustry by developing wipes without bleach for infection prevention, staph prevention and superbug prevention. Another huge market for 2XL is the
janitorial supply industry. “The company vision is to be inno-
vators in areas where its products can tap into areas that need attention and then forge a pathway into new mar- kets,” says Giammanco. She points to new products such as BodyWipes and FoodWipes as innovative answers to customer needs. “We want to offer the best wipes and dispensing solutions for almost every problem and need on the planet.” FBC
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