Depending on where you are, you may want to look at Optimum, DG and Autoglym. All are very fairly priced, work well and are easy to use.
What's DG? I'll read more about those products. Are these competitors of Meguiars? Or more of the higher end? I believe the best selling automotive car care product is Meguiars..? thanks so much for the information!
Mr.Classic DG = DuraGloss. You can find (or order) some of these through Napa or Carquest if you have one near you. Also you can order from their webpage or any vendors that might carry their products.
I have to say that if I was going to start detailing all over again, I would have started with DuraGloss just because every single product I have used of theirs has not only lived up to the hype and produced great results, it is priced under what I believe it could be sold at because it is that good. My favorite of theirs is DuraGloss Aquawax which is a spray sealant that not only looks good, but seems to have roughly 4-6 weeks of real world durability.
In my experience Griot's has great customer service. However, every time I see Richard Griot on Shop NBC or QVC, I cringe. You have to think about who Griot's is marketed to. They are really shooting for the middle-aged guy who has a car (collection) he loves. He isn't a wax-addicted detailing enthusiast, but he likes his cars clean. Griot's does a good job of simplifying detailing for those people. They don't give their products fancy names, and the directions are simple and clear. Need a polish to use by hand? Fine hand polish. Need a Cleaner for your interior? Interior Cleaner. Car wash? Car wash. The people Griot's targets are also willing to pay a little more for that simplification, the uniform colored bottle labels, and the beautiful color catalogs. Imagine that same demographic looking at a line like CG, or Menzerna... I wouldn't say Griot's stuff is garbage, but there is definitely better stuff out there (and better values too). Though, compared to a lot of OTC stuff, Griot's is far superior. Simply put, Griot's isn't made for most of the people on this board.