Brandtree

Who owns Thompson's WaterSeal?

Thompson's WaterSeal is owned by Sherwin-Williams (the United States, NYSE: SHW), which acquired the brand on 7 January 1997, as part of a $830 million deal that also included Minwax.[1][2] Thompson's WaterSeal was founded in 1929 in the United States and was independent until 1997.

Evidence: The Sherwin-Williams Company Annual Report on Form 10-K filed 2026-02-19, SEC EDGAR, 19 February 2026. Verified from filings; last checked .

Key facts

Current owner
The Sherwin-Williams Company verified
Owned since
· deal details
Deal price (whole deal)
$830 million (enterprise value) for 2 brands
Previous owner
Independent (1929–1997)
Owner HQ
🇺🇸 United States, Cleveland, Ohio
Origin
🇺🇸 United States
Founded
1929
Category
Home, garden & DIY › Home improvement › Paint & coatings
Parent ticker
NYSE: SHW
Last verified
· 2 sources

About Thompson's WaterSeal

Thompson's WaterSeal makes waterproofing treatments for decks, fences and masonry, and is the largest brand of its kind in the United States. It came to Sherwin-Williams with the Thompson Minwax acquisition in 1998. American decks are usually built from softwood that needs resealing every few years, which gives the brand a recurring market.

How often Sherwin-Williams names Thompson's WaterSeal in its annual report

A plain count of the times the name appears in the text of each annual report, not counting the start of a sentence. A brand that an owner writes about more is usually one it treats as central.

Annual report filedTimes Thompson's WaterSeal is named
20261
20251
20241

Ownership timeline of Thompson's WaterSeal

Owners of Thompson's WaterSeal over 1929 to 2026 Sherwin-Williams 1997–present Sherwin-Williams 19401960198020002020
  1. 1997 – present Sherwin-Williams — acquired 7 January 1997 [1][2] verified

Where Thompson's WaterSeal sits in Sherwin-Williams

Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.

Where Thompson's WaterSeal sits in Sherwin-Williams Tree of 5 brands under Sherwin-Williams. Sherwin-Williams Thompson's WaterSeal Krylon Minwax Sherwin-Williams Valspar

Open the full Sherwin-Williams ownership tree →

See the full Sherwin-Williams brand portfolio (5) →

Other brands owned by Sherwin-Williams

Sherwin-Williams controls 5 brands on Brandtree, 5 of them in home, garden & diy.

Also in home, garden & diy

All Sherwin-Williams brands →

Other brands in paint & coatings, and who owns them

The 38 brands in paint & coatings on Brandtree belong to 13 owners. The largest is RPM, with 6; Sherwin-Williams has 5.

BrandOwnerOwner based in
Rust-Oleum RPM 🇺🇸 United States
Dulux AkzoNobel 🇳🇱 Netherlands
Behr Masco 🇺🇸 United States
Dulux (Australia and New Zealand) Nippon Paint 🇯🇵 Japan
MAGNAT Śnieżka 🇵🇱 Poland
Asian Paints Asian Paints 🇮🇳 India
Craftsman Stanley Black & Decker 🇺🇸 United States
PebbleTec CRH 🇮🇪 Ireland

Every brand in paint & coatings and its owner →

About the owner: Sherwin-Williams

Sherwin-Williams is a publicly listed company headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, founded in 1866. Brandtree records 5 brands under its control, and it is listed as NYSE: SHW.

Sherwin-Williams was founded in Cleveland in 1866 and sold the first ready-mixed paint in a can, at a time when painters ground and mixed their own pigments. It is the largest coatings company in the world and sells principally through thousands of its own shops rather than through hardware retailers.

Sherwin-Williams: full profile, brands and acquisition history →

🇺🇸 Thompson's WaterSeal and other American brands

Brandtree records a controlling owner for 2,549 brands that began in the United States. 478 of them (19%) are now controlled by a company headquartered in another country; Thompson's WaterSeal is not one of them.

All American brands and who owns them →

Deals involving Thompson's WaterSeal

Acquisition closed

Sherwin-Williams acquires Minwax and Thompson's WaterSeal

Sherwin-Williams acquired all outstanding shares of Thompson Minwax Holding Corp through a wholly owned subsidiary, effective 7 January 1997. Buying the shares and paying off Thompson Minwax debt took about $830 million, financed largely with commercial paper that the company refinanced with bond issues later that year. The purchase brought the Minwax wood finishes and Thompson's WaterSeal lines into a company that had until then sold mostly paint.

Value
$830m
Seller
—
Regulatory
None recorded

Frequently asked questions

Who is the parent company of Thompson's WaterSeal?

The parent company of Thompson's WaterSeal is Sherwin-Williams, a publicly listed company headquartered in the United States.

Is Thompson's WaterSeal American?

Yes. Thompson's WaterSeal originated in the United States in 1929 and its owner, Sherwin-Williams, is also headquartered in the United States.

When did Sherwin-Williams buy Thompson's WaterSeal?

Sherwin-Williams completed its acquisition of Thompson's WaterSeal on 7 January 1997. The deal, which also included Minwax, was valued at $830 million (enterprise value).

Who owned Thompson's WaterSeal before Sherwin-Williams?

Thompson's WaterSeal was an independent company from its founding in 1929 until Sherwin-Williams acquired it in 1997.

Is Thompson's WaterSeal still owned by Sherwin-Williams?

Yes. As of 16 September 2026, Thompson's WaterSeal is still owned by Sherwin-Williams. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.

Sources (2) & corrections

Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.

  1. [1] The Sherwin-Williams Company Annual Report on Form 10-K filed 2026-02-19 — SEC EDGAR, SEC Form 10-K, published 19 February 2026; retrieved 16 September 2026.
  2. [2] The Sherwin-Williams Company Form 10-K for 1997, note 2 - acquisition and merger — SEC EDGAR, SEC Form 10-K, published 11 March 1998; retrieved 16 September 2026.

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