Kwikset is a lock and lockset manufacturer owned by Black and Decker Hardware and Home Improvement Group (BDHHI), a Division of Black and Decker. Kwikset was founded in 1946 by Adolf Schoepe and Karl Rhinehart. The name was derived from the company's first locks, which pioneered the then-revolutionary tubular lock design, which were relatively fast to install. Kwikset is one of the most popular brand of consumer locks in the United States, with Kwikset key blanks (KW1 or 66) available at almost every location where keys can be made.
Kwikset currently has manufacturing facilities in Denison, Texas, Charlotte, North Carolina, and Mexicali, Mexico. Currently a Kwikset facility in China is being built. Kwikset previously had manufacturing facilities in Anaheim, California; Bristow, Oklahoma, and Waynesboro, Georgia, but starting in 1996, these facilities were closed in a consolidation of operations to the Mexicali facility. Kwikset's Corporate headquarters is in Lake Forest, California.
In 1957 the American Hardware Corporation (AHC) purchased Kwikset. AHC in 1964 merged with Emhart Manufacturing Corporation, which was purchased by Black and Decker in 1989. In 2010 Black & Decker was purchased by Stanley Tools. Kwikset is part of the BDHHI Division of Black and Decker, which also owns lockset manufacturers Weiser and Baldwin.
In 1992 Kwikset introduced its higher-quality, high security Titan product line. About 2005 the line was rebranded as the "Signature Series".