2002 Appliance News Archives
| Dec 2002 |
|
| -To our surprise, Rangeaire, a brand of the Nortek kitchen ventilation monopoly, ceased to exist on January 1, 2001, as per the Rangeaire.com website. Having seen the Rangeaire styles, we can understand why. | |
| -CONFIRMED: After 1 year on the job, President and CEO Gary Hainley, has left DCS. Gary Hainley was brought into DCS from Kolpak Refrigeration in September 2001. Gary will be replaced by Mark Eichorn who hails from Rubbermaid. Mark might want to rent month to month. | |
| Nov 2002 |
|
| -Domotechnica
is dead, long live HomeTech. If you have booked tickets to
Domotechnica 2003 in Cologne, we recommend that you grovel to your travel
agent for a refund. The 2003 show has been canceled, and will be
"merged" into the February 2004 HomeTech show in Cologne.
Manufacturers have been fed up with Domotechnica's cost, and HomeTech's
layout and low turnout. The show will be held every 2 years, and
alternate between Cologne and Berlin. Though the merger cleans up
the existing train wreck, the owner of Domotechnica, KolnMesse must be
termed the big loser as they have seemingly lost a 50% interest. (Press Release) (Other Statements from the 2 shows and participants) |
|
| -Sub-Zero
/ Wolf introduces a family of dual fuel ranges on their website, 6 to 18
months before the actual products are available. This introduction
serves notice of Wolf's entry as a full line pro-style competitor. (press
release) Retail availability is given as 36” in Spring 2003, 48” in Summer 2003, 60” in Fall 2003, and 30” in Winter 2003. (why 60" before 30"?) Lacking a dual fuel unit, Sub-Zero is inoculated from any sales impact resulting from those who choose to wait for the newest and latest. The suppression of Viking, Thermador, and Dacor sales resulting from the early info release is a card Sub-Zero can play only once. They must be having fun in Wisconsin. |
|
| -Sub-Zero / Wolf introduces functionality with their new, improved, simple to navigate website. | |
| Oct 2002 |
|
| -Maytag has created the Maytag Specialty Group to combine and manage its Jade Products Group (which includes Dynasty), and its Amana Commercial Products unit. The new group was created to better serve the commercial and pro-style segments and will be lead by newly hired VP and GM Craig Ibsen (ex-CEO of Appliancezone.com). This move seems to be a concrete indication that Maytag will be keeping all of its current commercial cooking businesses. (See May 2001) | |
| -Lynx BBQ finally joins the modern age with a new website | |
| -Nortek, the ventilation empire (if not monopoly), parent company of Broan, Nutone, Best, Venmar, Rangeaire and holder of over 80% of the US kitchen ventilation market by units has accepted an acquisition proposal by Kelso and Company "in partnership with certain members of Nortek management including Richard L. Bready, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Nortek." The completion of the acquisition requires SEC and stockholder approval. See the press release. | |
| -BSH reorganizes the executive level of sales and marketing eliminating the VP of Sales and the National Sales Manager positions (those individuals have been reassigned). Under the new structure each distributor will have only 1 BSH account manger, that is one contact for all Bosch, Thermador and Gaggenau products. Each account manager will have only 1 distributor to manage. Sounds simple. We like it. | |
| -The website of ASKO's mid-level brand Eurotech is added to the Appliance links | |
| Sep 2002 |
|
| -Komoda Grills fun and affordable tiled BBQs added to BBQ page. | |
| -Jarrell Distributing we have just learned was bought by Sub-Zero on May 1. The name has been changed to Westeye Group Distributing Southwest. We have obviously been asleep at the switch. | |
| Aug 2002 |
|
| -Peerless-Premier enters the Pro - style range market in a segment all their own.....we will call it modest luxury. This line features somewhat lower BTUs per burner than Viking/Thermador, but at 1/5 to 1/6 the price. | |
| -Spin-X added to Appliance list. The Spin-X is a spin-cycle-only appliance, which is to be used after your feeble washer is finished but before the dryer and which promises to remove "an additional quart of water in 2 minutes". They claim low electric use, residual detergent removal, and 3300 RPMs. (See Time Magazine August 26, 2002 under heading "10 Technologies for you and the planet") | |
| Jul 2002 |
|
| -We are attempting to secure the rights to reprint the "The Viking Invasion" from the July 29 issue of the The New Yorker. The article discusses entrepreneurial beginnings of Viking Range Corp. and the rise of the trophy kitchen. | |
| -Thor Appliances, a brand marketing combi-washer / dryers made in Italy, has been added to the "Appliances" list. Though the Thor brand has some history, we have some inkling that there is a significant disconnect between that history and today's Thor. | |
| -ASKO has sent us a press release indicating that they are donating washers, dryers and dishwashers to the Solar Decathlon, an intercollegiate competition to design and build super energy efficient solar powered homes with modern amenities. We applaud ASKO's participation and the goals of the Decathlon. ASKO has spoken. So as a consumer or an industry professional, are you making appliance decisions to save the world? | |
| -ApplianceAdvisor.com wins an award from Fisher & Paykel for being the "highest ranking referrer to the Fisher & Paykel website" for the month of June, 2002. See our Award. | |
| Jun 2002 |
|
| -The editors of ApplianceAdvisor.com, lacking the prerequisite chemical dependencies for a lovely stay at the Betty Ford Clinic (in Rancho Mirage, CA), have decided to take a month sabbatical in order to maintain a modicum of sanity. It doesn't sound like we missed anything, but if we did, please let us know. | |
| May 2002 |
|
| -Broan launches a website makeover for itself and a new site for Best. These are a huge improvement and a long time coming. The original website was a festering pool of stagnant unhelpful information seemingly designed by the Politburo. | |
| -VintageStoves.com has been added to the Antique sort of the Appliance page. With stainless steel appliance saturation, we predict that demand for vintage rebuilds will explode. People are always searching for "Wow". | |
| -Added the Marcone Parts service Parts Attic to the Pro + Trade page. Parts Attic claims to buy discontinued appliance parts, and to hold your parts requests in the computer until that part comes in. | |
| -National appliance repair franchiser Mr. Appliance added to "Service" heading of Pro + Trade page. They promise to come to your house and fix your appliances. They are a very big company getting bigger but your work will be done by a local franchisee. | |
| -The red neck Fixitnow.com added to "Service" heading of Pro + Trade page. If you think, or even care, if Hillary Clinton is a lesbian, than this right wing appliance manifesto is for you. No idea if the appliance repair info is good. Politics is of the "rudimentary nervous system and proud of it" variety. | |
| -The
e-dealer Gourmet-Appliances.com started by Ed Ryan in October 2000 has
been closed. Ed Ryan entered the internet world after his Euro-Life
Distributing (covering NJ and NY) was squeezed out of business (see June
2000), by the Wolf/Sub-Zero re-org. Gourmet-Appliances.com has been
removed from the e-dealer list. LATE NEWS: Ed Ryan has landed softly at Hadco's New York/ New Jersey expansion. |
|
| -Miele which is famed for its products and its 1 step direct to dealer strategy has in 3 territories decided to use the 2 step method (Miele to Distributor to Dealer). Those 3 distributors (Luwa of Seattle, Sierra Select of California and Kimball of the Rockies) will now be joined by a 4th. Miele will be joining the Viking created distributor Southeast Appliance Distributing in July for the territory between the northern border of Florida and the southern borders of Virginia and Kentucky. Miele said that the change does not reflect a change in the basic distribution strategy. | |
| Apr 2002 |
|
| -DCS CFO Sylvia Byrd has left the company. She had replaced CFO Carl Lehman who had left in September 2001 co-incidentally with the departure of then President Mike Markowich. The CFO position remains open. | |
| -THE
FAT LADY SINGS IN THE NORTHEAST +Effective April 1, Almo Distributing has acquired Steve Gilman Associates (the New England distributor of AGA and Dynasty Ranges) Over the past several months most of Gilman's lines (Bosch, Scotsman, Best, Five Star) have been stripped away by Clarke Distribution and Hadco New England. Larry Feldman, Almo's VP of Sales and Marketing has indicated that Mr. Steve Gilman will manage Almo's high end appliance sales in E-PA, NJ, NY and New England. There were no Gilman Associate's appliance lines, warehouses, offices, assets or, more importantly, personnel who would be following Mr. Steve Gilman in the switch to Almo. +Effective May 1, Thermador and Gaggenau will be pulled from Clarke Distribution and given to Hadco New England +Effective April 1, Hadco has opened an office in New York to cover Thermador, Bosch, and Gaggenau; the brands pulled from Goldman distribution. Hadco territory now reaches from the Canadian border of Maine to the Florida border of Georgia with the BSH brands Thermador, Gaggenau and Bosch. Who has got who's eggs in one basket? +Effective February 15: Stoves of America HQ'ed in Woburn, MA (where John Travolta's "A Civil Action" takes place) has been shut down. Stoves of America was the US distribution arm of, and partially owned by, Stoves Ltd of the UK (who officially pulled the plug). Boston Basins, a maker of ahhh basins we think, owned the balance of Stoves of America, and also nationally distributed (and continues to distribute) Tecnowind hoods of Fabriano, Italy. Stoves of America president, Ron Rhinerson, is no longer affiliated with Boston Basins, Stoves or Tecnowind. I have a headache. |
|
| -The 2002 Kitchen and Bath Show in Chicago closes April 7th. New appliances, new sizes, new categories, new brands, and of course lots of last year's junk. Watch for ApplianceAdvisor's Major Appliance Report.....coming soon...ish | |
| -Nuvent, started by Nutone refugees fleeing the Broan march to the sea (see January 2000), continues to live in interesting times. President Wayne Speers sold the business to Fantech in the 4th Qtr of 2001. Wayne has since left the business entirely. Nuvent is now on the block again. As long as Nuvent produces range hoods, the Advisor promises to feel their pain. | |
| -A new southern California based high end BBQ firm just entered the scene. Excell Appliances is headed up by industry veteran Mike Markowich (see Sept 2001). See their press release. | |
| Mar 2002 |
|
| -DACOR has stopped production of the Pro-Style Epicure series All-Gas Ranges due to low demand. Dacor continues to produce the Preference All-Gas Ranges. | |
| -Küppersbusch will be showing at the 2002 Kitchen and Bath Show, finally crossing the pond to compete in North America with the likes of Gaggenau etc, etc. | |
| -Vent-A-Hood appoints Eastern Marketing as its Northeast distributor replacing both Fretz and Delia. | |
| -From the hotbed of American appliance ingenuity, southern California........ We would like to welcome Capital Cooking Equipment of Carson, CA. Started in 2001 and staffed with DCS refugees, they produce outdoor BBQs, and Pro-style ranges. | |
| -BSH/USA President and CEO HansPeter Haase has indicated on Feb 26, that he will retire after 36 years with BSH to be replaced by BSH/China President and CEO Franz Bosshard. No firm schedule of departure was given. | |
| Feb 2002 |
|
| -Faber will will be sticking with Viking's GPM cloned Northern Pacific Distribution in western Canada. They kept the location and most of the people, but changed the name........and we would imagine the ownership. | |
| -SuperKitchens.com added to Consumer page. This is a helpful kitchen design site from Kraftmaid Cabinetry. | |
| -Thermador is recalling 2,460 48" double oven ranges made between March 1998 and November 2001 because of excessive oven door temperatures on the proofing oven. The proofing oven is the poodle sized oven on the left side. See LA Times Article See Consumer Product Safety Release | |
| Jan 2002 |
|
| -Geoff Nunberg comments on the linguistics of appliance "retronyms" and other stuff on this audio clip from public radio's Fresh Air with Terry Gross. http://www.npr.org/ramfiles/fa/20020124.fa.03.ram Click only if you have a few minutes to kill. | |
| -Dacor
promoted several Regional Sales people to VPs of Sales, perhaps a result
of Dacor's strategy of 1 step distribution. -BSH promoted David Brightman to National Service Manager. |
|
| -The
Opportunies page is refreshed with a few
new businesses for sale and a patent for a funny looking
refrigerator. Do you have something to sell, someone to hire, or a truckload of 31" wide ranges to unload? Place your ad on the Opportunities page or somewhere else on the site. |
|
| -As of Jan 1, ASKO jumps from Delia to Clarke Distribution in New England and Goldman Distribution in New York. | |
| -As of Jan 1, Sub-Zero and ASKO have chosen Jarrell Distribution to replace Freed in South-TX and South-LA. Jarrell will now cover all of TX, OK, AK, MS, and LA. These brands more than make up for the loss of Dacor which has gone direct. Freed has chosen Thermador/Bosch as its primary brand. | |
| -Appliance Magazine reports that Salton Inc the maker of internet appliance iCEBOX has partnered with Microsoft in Microsoft's Rapid Development Program. We first reported on the CMi Worldwide owned iCEBOX after the 2001 Kitchen and Bath show as the internet appliance most likely to succeed. | |
| -Viking announces that they have invented a new distributor in the Canadian south-west to replace GPM. Northern Pacific Appliance Distributing of Burnaby, BC starts with many if not most of the people from GPM and using the original GPM facilities. |