Kwikset currently has manufacturing facilities in Denison, Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Mexicali, Mexico.

Adolph Schoepe and friend [2] Karl Rhinehart founded Gateway Manufacturing Company in South Gate just before the end of World War II.

When demand surged after the war, their ability to supply goods from the earlier manufactured stock cemented a position as the largest United States supplier of locks.

Kwikset subsequently became part of the Hardware and Home Improvement (HHI) Group of Stanley Black & Decker, which also owned lockset manufacturers Weiser and Baldwin.

On October 9, 2012, the Wall Street Journal reported that Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. had agreed to acquire the HHI division from Stanley Black & Decker's, including Kwikset, and that the transaction was slated to close by December 31, 2012.