Milton B. Loeb was born on January 28, 1887 in Lafayette, Indiana, United States, the son of Solomon Loeb, a merchant and banker, and Carrie Baer. It is possible that his father was a member of a family of Jewish businessmen who immigrated to the United States from the village of Bechtheim, near the German city of Worms, in the 1850's.
Loeb graduated with a degree in law from the University of Michigan in 1908.
At the beginning of his career Loeb practiced as a lawyer. One of client's brother-in-law, who sold aluminum kitchenware, had found that homemakers were experiencing difficulties in cleaning the aluminum pots and pans. He explained his problem to Loeb's client, who was a manufacturer of costume jewelry and worked with many types of metals. The jeweler invented a method for cleaning aluminum using a combination of steel wool and a special reddish soap he had developed to clean thoroughly without harm to the utensils. The new product appeared to have great potential. Loeb, who had observed the brilliant shine that the product produced, suggested the name Brillo.
In April 1913 the Brillo Manufacturing Company was incorporated, with Loeb as treasurer. A factory was built in Brooklyn. Its first product consisted of a special cake of red soap and loose wads of metal wool. The company grew steadily through World War I. In 1915 a new line of steel wool products for commercial and industrial use was developed and marketed under the trade name Supreme. While still practicing law, Loeb took an increasingly active role in the company before he enlisted in the United States Army in World War I.
After the war Loeb found that the expanding scouring-pad business required all of his time. He soon decided to leave his law practice to become president of Brillo, a position he held until his death. Loeb believed strongly in the power of marketing and advertising, and he concentrated on product and sales development. In 1921 he registered the trade names Brillo and Supreme with the U. S. Patent Office. In order to further the expansion of the company Loeb enlisted the assistance of a talented engineer and inventor, Crosby Field. In 1923 Field invented a revolutionary method of manufacturing metal wool. He became the company's vicepresident and secretary and was responsible for the invention of numerous other machines and processes at Brillo.
By the second half of the 1920's Brillo manufactured about 60 percent of the steel wool produced in the United States. Loeb also saw the potential for his products in foreign markets. In the late 1920's Canada became the first foreign market developed by Loeb. A Canadian subsidiary, Brillo Manufacturing Co. Ltd. , was later established in Toronto during the 1950's. His products were also exported to the British Isles from 1928. By 1939 the exports had grown to such an extent that the main importer of his products was renamed Brillo Manufacturing Company of Great Britain, Ltd. It became Brillo's first subsidiary and built a factory in north London. The British business suffered badly during World War II when steel wool production for domestic consumption was temporarily halted.
At the beginning of the postwar period Loeb's main business in the United States employed some 450 people. By 1950 Loeb decided to invest $1 million to increase the capacity of his two plants in Brooklyn. In 1955 he acquired the Williams Co. of London, Ohio, a manufacturer of industrial and household steel wool. Loeb believed that the Williams company products, Sun Ray and Jex, would supplement the Brillo line, particularly in the commercial field. He also felt that the acquisition would bring him closer to important Midwestern marketing areas. Loeb's business in the British Isles also underwent a substantial expansion after World War II.
On September 22, 1955, Brillo Pads were advertised on the first night of commercial television broadcasting in Great Britain. The modern Brillo Pad did not become popular in Great Britain until after the television advertising campaign. Under Loeb's direction the company continued to expand in the British Isles during the second half of the 1950's. In 1959 the Brillo Manufacturing Company of Ireland, Ltd. , was founded, and a factory was built outside Dublin. In the fall of 1963 Loeb agreed to the merger of Brillo with the Purex Corporation, Ltd. , of Lakewood, California, with Purex as the surviving name. Brillo was subsequently operated as an autonomous division under its existing management. Loeb became a director and senior vice president of Purex, while continuing in charge of Brillo operations and as managing director and chairman of Brillo's British subsidiary.
During his lifetime Loeb also served as a director of the Soap and Detergent Association and a director and vice-president of S. Loeb and Sons; Loeb and Hene Co. ; Loeb's, Inc. ; and the Loeb Realty Co. He remained active both in business and philanthropy until shortly before his death in New York City.
On September 12, 1917, Loeb married Theresa Hilder. They had two children before her death on May 23, 1942. He subsequently married the former Mrs. Ethel Strauss Steiner.
