It’s funny when you think about the snowball effect and how amazing it is that one little thing can go and go until it transforms into a huge, impressive final result. Certain companies are like that. They’ll start out tiny, offering a cup of coffee, a food processor, or in this case, a stand mixer, and before you know it, things are growing, expanding. People want more; they love what you’re doing and want to see what else you can do. It’s incredible the way companies and brands branch out, change and evolve throughout so many years to encompass the massive audience they do now. Here, what started as a single stand mixer has advanced into items as big as dishwashers to products as tasteful as the KitchenAid espresso machine. Whatever you’re looking for, you’re sure to find it within their ranks.
KitchenAid History
Since the impressive year of 1919, the brand has survived and spread into homes across the country. In the 1900s, the Hobart Manufacturing Company was already making electronic kitchen devices meant to grind food items, hard or soft. In 1915 a subsidiary of the company displayed the first model of electric mixer. It sat right on the table and mixed everything for you without the need to hold it like the typical hand-mixer. One executive’s wife is said to have stated that it was the “best kitchen aid I ever had.” The name stuck and in 1919, the KitchenAid stand mixer was brought to the masses. Consumers loved it. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s it was sold door to door or at parties by salesmen. Meals were made by the salespeople using the mixer in order to best demonstrate all its wonderful properties.
The Hobart Manufacturing Company was not one to sit on the sidelines and market only one major selling appliance. In 1926 they purchased the Crescent Washing Machine Company in order to market the concept of a home dishwashing machine. Ideas and production slowed during World War II, but after the war they brought their washing machine to light, marketing it under the already popular KitchenAid name. The company didn’t stop there, either. Realizing that people trusted the brand’s products because of their effectiveness, quality, and reliability, they continued to create new merchandise as well as add different items to their product line. In 1966 they purchased the Equipment Division of the National Rubber Machinery Corporation. The move was to assist in the creation of an entirely new product, a food waste disposer. More products followed throughout the next several years, all of which settled under the main brand name in order to help market them and promote a good feeling with consumers. The Hobart Manufacturing Company created an instant hot water dispenser in 1971 and a trash compactor in 1972.
Fancier items like KitchenAid espresso machines were still far down the line, and with Hobart’s successes, you might be wondering what happened to them. While the Hobart Manufacturing Company continued to expand itself by buying the Chambers Corporation in 1985 in order to construct a line of stovetops and ovens for the brand, it was during that year that Whirlpool took strong notice of Hobart. Even though the Hobart Manufacturing Company was experiencing tremendous success, they agreed to let Whirlpool acquire the company for $150 million (around $350 million today). While Whirlpool got most of KitchenAid, the Emerson Electric Company got into the deal for the dishwashers and trash compactor components. An antitrust suit followed, which prevented the deal from being completed until 1986 after an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission. Staff and headquarters were moved, Whirlpool settled into the brand. The CEO of Whirlpool even spent $3 million to renovate an old brick building to create a new headquarters for the brand. All the while people continued to buy mixers and other products, proving that no matter what, they liked the products and wanted more.
This desire did not go unnoticed, and they went on a full blown campaign to create more new and sought-after products to the brand name’s product line. In 1987 they showed off the whole line of items at the Association of Home Builders Show located in Dallas, Texas. They offered high profit margins to dealers that carried the entire line and helped set up displays to showcase the line. These displays were so elaborate, they were the size of actual kitchens full of items. Over time, new items were added to the line; KitchenAid grills, utensils, bakeware, KitchenAid espresso machines, cutlery, textiles, and more.
Over the years, the Whirlpool Company has reorganized itself along with its subsidiaries in order to best serve the company’s and the consumers’ needs. KitchenAid remained the premium appliance line. The aim was for people to purchase multiple items from the brand name, getting quality as well as products that complimented one another in style and color. Your KitchenAid espresso machine looks fine in nickel pearl color next to your nickel pearl stand mixer. Ad campaigns showed three generations of families using the products and sought out the best time slots on television for maximum exposure.
What KitchenAid is Known For
Still one of the highest selling brands, they can be found in a number of retailers throughout North America. Their main concern is with quality and design as opposed to seeking out a higher sales volume using lower priced items of less value. They see themselves as a high-class product creator and view its consumers as sophisticated and smart. Why do you think that KitckenAid espresso machine looks particularly stylish? The company opened up a design center during the 1990s in order to specifically improve product design through various methods of market research. They now seek to show their products to the rest of the world and to customers who are looking for the same superiority as buyers here do.
Their website reflects their commitment using crystal clear graphics, sleek construction, and smooth transitions from product to product, allowing you to compare various items in order to choose the best one for you. Firmly settled in the world of kitchen appliances for over 90 years, no matter what you’re searching for, refrigerators or KitchenAid espresso machines, you can be sure that whatever you decide upon will last you a long time.
