Miele
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| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | Herzebrock, Germany (July 1, 1899) |
| Founder(s) | Carl Miele and Reinhard Zinkann |
| Headquarters | Gütersloh, Germany (since 1907) |
| Key people | Markus Miele (Co-Proprietor, MD) Reinhard Zinkann Jr. (Co-Proprietor, MD) Olaf Bartsch (Finances, Administration) Reto Bazzi (Marketing, Sales) Eduard Sailer (Technology)[1] |
| Products | Domestic appliances and commercial equipment |
| Revenue |  €2,830 million (2009/2010) |
| Owner(s) | Miele and Zinkann families (approx. 51% and 49% respectively; currently 56 family shareholders) |
| Employees | 16,500 (August 2010)[1] |
| Website | www.miele.com |
Miele (pronounced 'mee-luh') is a manufacturer of high-end domestic appliances, commercial equipment and fitted kitchens, based in Gütersloh, Germany. Miele has always been a family-owned and -run company, founded in 1899 by Carl Miele and Reinhard Zinkann.
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[edit] History
Miele's first products were a cream separator, butter churn, and tub washing machine, under the Meteor brand. Carl Miele supervised manufacturing personally, and Reinhard Zinkann apprenticed and handled finances and sales.
The Míele trademark was used very early on and appeared on all machines, nameplates, printed materials and advertising produced by the company. From the mid-1920s, a recognition feature of the logo has been a sloping dash used as the dot on the "i".
The trademark has remained unchanged apart from three minor "face-lifts" to reflect contemporary tastes. A survey by the Süddeutsche Zeitung, one of Germany's leading daily newspapers, found that the "i" alone was sufficient to identify the Miele brand.
Miele exports products to global markets and is represented in 37 countries. Miele's expansion into the United States came in 1983, when they established corporate headquarters in Somerset, New Jersey. They later relocated to a Michael Graves designed headquarters building in Princeton in March 1999. Products are manufactured in Germany, the Czech Republic and Romania and shipped to the United States, where there are showrooms in ten states.
[edit] Products
Miele produces domestic appliances including laundry appliances; vacuum cleaners; dishwashers; rotary irons; built-in convection, steam, and speed ovens; hobs; cooker hoods; freestanding and built-in refrigerators, freezers, and wine coolers; and coffee systems. The company also produces commercial laundry equipment including wet cleaning machines, lab glassware washers, dental disinfectors, and medical equipment washers.
Miele was presented with an award in Munich on February 7, for being the most successful company in Germany in 2007. In the Best Company category, Miele beat last year's winner Google, which placed second, and also Porsche, which came in third.
Rankings for this Best Brands prize are the result of market research covering such key criteria as current economic market success and brand recognition and popularity among consumers. Miele was recognized as Best Company and also achieved a top-five place in the category Best Product Brand. Miele was honored as Best Domestic Appliance Brand in the UK by Which? in 2007 and again in 2008, being only one of two brands to win twice in a row. They have since won again in 2010.
In North America, Miele is marketed as a high-end major appliance brand. They compete against brands such as Kuppersbusch, Gaggenau, Fagor, Viking Range, AEG and Thermador.
Steve Jobs was the owner of a Miele washing machine, and publicly praised the firm's design philosophy.[2]
[edit] Slogans
Miele's motto is Immer Besser, German for "Always Better". Its slogan in the Netherlands is Er is geen betere (there is none better).
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Miele at a glance". Miele Presse Deutschland. http://www.miele-presse.de/de/en/press/8412_8441.htm. Retrieved 27 August 2010.
- ^ Steve Jobs: The Next Insanely Great Thing (continued) By Gary Wolf
[edit] External links
Official websites:
