Business View - January 2016 35
According to Dan Baker, President of Ziebart Corpora-
tion, his company has been safely ensconced in the
realm of genericized brands for decades because, as
the originator of the scientific process of protecting a
car or truck from the ravages of corrosion caused by
rain, snow, salt, and ice, “you don’t get your car ‘rust-
proofed’” he says, “you get it ‘Ziebarted.’”
Ziebart, the company, was founded in Detroit, Michi-
gan in 1959, by Kurt Ziebart, a German immigrant
who came to America in 1953 and landed a job as
a mechanic in a local dealership. While rebuilding a
wrecked Packard automobile in his spare time, the
crafty inventor began to experiment with a rustproofing
process for its body panels. Within a few years, he had
perfected his sealant and, along with two partners,
opened his first rustproofing shop in the Detroit area
to offer his proprietary process to local car owners.
Baker explains that before Ziebart, car manufacturers
had attempted to rustproof their vehicles prior to sell-
ing them, “but they were not successful at it. In the
beginning, they were actually afraid of the liability,” he
says. “American Motors tried it, but were stymied by
some technical issues in the plant environment when
they were manufacturing and assembling their vehi-
cles.” So, rustproofing became a strictly aftermarket
procedure known as Ziebart Rust Protection, and of-
fered only after a vehicle was sold.
Ziebart owned his company for several years, and when
he decided to expand in order to meet the growing de-
mand for rustproofing, he brought in Roger Waindle,
who had both franchising experience and expertise
in the field of corrosion studies. Their first U.S. fran-
chise opened in Detroit in and the first international
franchise opened several years later in nearby Wind-
sor, Ontario. Waindle bought the now prosperous busi-
ness and renamed it Ziebart Process Corporation. The
company was later purchased by E. Jan Hartmann who
began franchising operations worldwide. “From those
AT A GLANCE
WHO:
Ziebart International Corporation
WHAT:
Worldwide franchisor of the Ziebart brand
of automotive aftermarket products, services, and
stores
WHERE:
Headquarters in Detroit, Michigan
WEBSITE
:
FRANCHISE
