Our story

Chem-Dry is both New Zealand and the world's leading upholstery, carpet cleaning and flood restoration brand. Here in New Zealand, you will find our local Chem-Dry owners and their teams servicing all regions across the country.

Our structure brings together the best of both worlds; local owners who are just a phone call away providing hands on assistance, helping our customers take care of their homes and businesses from sorting stressful flood and fire situations through to carpet and furniture cleaning. Behind the scenes, our connection to Chem-Dry international provides us access to valuable technical training, ongoing research, product development and best practice developments.

The Chem-Dry brand originated in the USA in 1977 when a revolutionary carbonated solution was formulated. Not only did it clean beautifully, but it was also safe and non-toxic. In 1986, Peter Snow purchased the first international Chem-Dry franchise, bringing the brand to our shores. Starting in his hometown of Hastings and operating out of the family station wagon, Peter knew he was onto a good thing when demand for the cleaning services grew, as did the footprint of Chem-Dry in New Zealand with a fast-growing number of franchisees jumping on board to be part of the nationwide operation.

Our nationwide coverage not only means that there is a Chem-Dry wherever you may be across the country, but it also assists us with responding to weather events. When floods strikes, our franchise owners from across the country deploy team members and equipment to the affected area immediately. Teams may be there for weeks or several months working with the community and insurance companies to restore flood damaged homes.

In 2021, the members of New Zealand founded co-operative business Flooring Xtra, came together to purchase the Chem-Dry New Zealand business from founder Peter Snow.

Flooring Xtra, made up of 61 locally owned and operated stores throughout New Zealand, shares a similar story to Chem-Dry, one of families, local ownership and community, making the brand partnership a perfect fit.

Together, Flooring Xtra and Chem-Dry are able to offer customers an end-to-end experience, from carpet installation through to maintenance and cleaning.

Exciting things are in the pipeline with this partnership which sees to bring about a new level of care and service to the industry.