Boushelle Services

Boushelle has been cleaning loose, oriental, and custom rugs since 1903. Our cleaning machinery is the backbone of the company it's how we got started in the the flooring business. We have the biggest and most modern cleaning plant in the Midwest. Our main machine is housed in a building that was specifically built around it because of the machine's size, which is 19 feet wide, 70 feet long, and three stories tall. Where did General/Boushelle Corporation come from? Why did it happen? It all started with rug cleaning. Until the development of the automated rug cleaning equipment, in 1949, rug cleaning was a slow tedious job. When Boushelle introduced professional rug cleaning to the Chicago metropolitan market in 1946 their volume sky rocketed. Soon there was a demand from the public for wall-to-wall carpet cleaning in the home. To meet this demand General/Boushelle carefully trained cleaning teams to provide professional carpet cleaning in the home and soon after, professional furniture cleaning. Next General/Boushelle discovered that there was a market in drapery cleaning and expanded into the dry cleaning field. They now operate one of the largest and most modern drapery cleaning plants in the country. In 1959, General/Boushelle started a research project on carpet and rug dyeing which resulted in the development of a revolutionary technique for dyeing carpeting on the floor. The next step was to set up the only vat dyeing operation in the Midwest capable of dyeing entire rolls of carpeting. Other cleaning and special services were added i.e., Soil Retardant, Flameproofing, Anti Static, Waterproofing, Mothproofing, etc. Now that General/Boushelle had developed the skilled personnel and efficient equipment, the next move was to enter the commercial cleaning field. Managers of hotels, motels, office buildings, apartment buildings and other commercial establishments found that General/Boushelle could offer a complete package cleaning service. When the demand increased, Boushelle established a separate commercial cleaning division. Now, in addition to carpet and drapery cleaning, they also offer complete janitorial services and supplies. Today this division has expanded its operations throughout the Midwest. Because General/Boushelle cleans more rugs and carpeting than any one else, they know more about the characteristics of rugs and carpeting than anyone else. Therefore it was only natural that they should sell rugs and carpeting. They now operate a chain of retails stores throughout the Chicagoland area as well as a Contract Sales division. In addition to selling top brand name carpeting they also offer salvage and reconditioned carpets at unusual savings.