Box of Sunlight brand soap

Sunlight soap was the world's first branded, packaged and mass-produced laundry soap. Used for washing clothes and general household use. It was made by Lever & Company, who had been a family grocery business that branched into soap-making after brothers William and James Lever brought a small soap works in 1884. Unlike many soaps of the time which used tallow – animal fats – the Sunlight soap was made using glycerine and vegetable oils, including palm oil.

Success was rapid and production volumes accelerated to meet the demands. With over 400 tons of Sunlight soap being made every week, in the late 1880s work began on a new factory by the river Mersey, near Birkenhead, complete with a purpose-built village with good quality housing and amenities for its workers. Now trading as Lever Brothers Limited, Sunlight soap was exported across the world and such was its success that the new village was named Port Sunlight.

The Sunlight brand was an effective cleaning product but it also marked a shift in the marketing and branding of a mass-manufactured product which became a staple for households across a broad social spectrum. The enlightened treatment of their workers also provided a model of corporate philanthropy that was taken up by other companies. Now containing several hundred listed buildings, Port Sunlight has been recognised as a heritage site of international importance.

Sunlight soap was the world's first branded, packaged and mass-produced laundry soap. Used for washing clothes and general household use. It was made by Lever & Company, who had been a family grocery business that branched into soap-making after brothers William and James Lever brought a small soap works in 1884. Unlike many soaps of the time which used tallow – animal fats – the Sunlight soap was made using glycerine and vegetable oils, including palm oil.

Success was rapid and production volumes accelerated to meet the demands. With over 400 tons of Sunlight soap being made every week, in the late 1880s work began on a new factory by the river Mersey, near Birkenhead, complete with a purpose-built village with good quality housing and amenities for its workers. Now trading as Lever Brothers Limited, Sunlight soap was exported across the world and such was its success that the new village was named Port Sunlight.

The Sunlight brand was an effective cleaning product but it also marked a shift in the marketing and branding of a mass-manufactured product which became a staple for households across a broad social spectrum. The enlightened treatment of their workers also provided a model of corporate philanthropy that was taken up by other companies. Now containing several hundred listed buildings, Port Sunlight has been recognised as a heritage site of international importance.