Anna Bissell took over her family’s carpet-sweeper business in 1889 after her husband’s death, becoming America’s first female CEO and leading the company for 42 years | World News

Anna Bissell took charge of the family business in 1889 and became the first female chief executive in the United States. The business had begun several years earlier, when Anna and Melville R. Bissell ran a crockery shop in Grand Rapids, Michigan. A problem with sawdust in the shop led Melville to invent an improved carpet sweeper, giving the couple a new product to sell. Anna was closely involved in the company from its early days, helping run its operations and market its sweepers.According to BISSELL, she led the company for 42 years, overseeing its growth into an international household name. Its account traces the business from a small shop to a major carpet-sweeper manufacturer.

Anna Bissell’s role in building the business before becoming its CEO

Melville and Anna Bissell ran a small crockery shop in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1876. Sawdust was a constant problem in the shop, prompting Melville to invent an improved carpet sweeper. The product gave the couple a new business opportunity. They travelled to Philadelphia to sell the sweepers to distributors, dividing the work between them on State Street.Anna eventually outsold Melville, selling five or six dozen sweepers to Wanamaker’s, a high-fashion department store. In 1883, production moved from a makeshift shop to a five-story factory on Mill Street. The factory was struck by fire in 1884, but staff cleared the debris and resumed shipping products just 19 days later.

Anna Bissell became America’s first female CEO in 1889

Anna was involved in the business from its earliest days, working in operations as well as marketing and sales. In 1889, she succeeded Melville and became America’s first female CEO. She remained at the helm for 42 years, from 1889 to 1931. During that period, BISSELL expanded and became an international household name.By the late 1880s and 1890s, the company had grown to 250 associates and said it held 75% of the world market. The company also reported that it had sold more than two million sweepers during its history, reflecting the product’s reach in homes and markets beyond the United States.

BISSELL carpet sweepers reached international markets under Anna’s leadership

The carpet sweeper gained recognition beyond the United States during Anna’s leadership. In 1890, the BISSELL sweeper crossed the Atlantic, and Queen Victoria insisted that her palace be ‘Bisselled’ every week. The product later received awards at major international exhibitions. The Grand Rapids Sweeper won a gold medal at the Paris Exposition in 1900.Four years later, the BISSELL Sweeper received the Grand Prize at the World’s Fair in St. Louis. These milestones formed part of the company’s expansion during the period after Anna took charge. The business continued to build its reputation around the carpet sweeper, the invention that had emerged from the sawdust problem.

Melville Bissell Jr. took over after Anna’s 42-year leadership

Anna’s 42-year tenure ended in 1931, when Melville Bissell Jr. became president and took the company into the middle of the 20th century. The business continued to develop products for household cleaning in the decades that followed. In 1956, it introduced the ShampooMaster carpet shampooer, which the company said made scrubbing carpets on hands and knees a thing of the past.It launched its first electric product and combination vacuum and floor scrubbers in 1960. BISSELL later expanded into deep-cleaning machines, upright vacuums and products designed for homes with pets. The company’s 150-year history presents these developments as part of a line of innovation that began with Melville’s carpet sweeper in 1876.