In this guide
Booking a collection in a couple of taps feels like a thoroughly modern convenience, but keeping clothes clean without ruining them is a problem people have been solving for a very long time. The story runs from Roman wash-houses to a French dye-works accident to the eco-friendly solvents we use across London and Surrey today.
1. Ancient beginnings
In ancient Rome, professional launderers called fullones cleaned woollen togas using a mix of ammonia (often sourced from urine) and fuller's clay to lift grease and dirt. It wasn't glamorous, but it worked, and it made laundering a recognised trade. Medieval Europe carried the idea forward with lye and wood ash to strip out stains before the first chemical solvents existed.
2. The birth of modern dry cleaning
The modern industry traces back to a French dye-works owner named Jean-Baptiste Jolly, who is widely credited with noticing how well kerosene lifted stains from fabric in the 1820s. Across the Atlantic, Thomas Jennings, the first African American to hold a US patent, had already patented a "dry scouring" process in 1821. By the 1930s, perchloroethylene, known as "perc", had become the industry's standard solvent for decades to come.
3. Dry cleaning in modern London
London's dry cleaning scene today looks nothing like a 1930s high street shop. The shift has been towards biodegradable solvents in place of perc, pickup and delivery that fits around commuters and professionals, and expert care that blends old trade knowledge with newer equipment. It's one of the reasons London is often held up as a leader in sustainable garment care.
