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THE CANDY COMPANY
The world was changing, Italy was getting ready for rebuilding, for growing...
It was in 1945 that the Model 50 first saw the light of day in the workshops of
Eden Fumagalli at Monza, famous for the manufacture of precision instruments. It
was one of the earliest miracles of domestic well-being: the first all-Italian washing
machine. A product of Eden Fumagalli's extraordinary talent, the new machine officially
launched at the Milan Fair of 1946.
The Candy brand name came into being. Since then its progress has been marked by
extraordinary success. The founder's sons, Enzo, Niso and Peppino Fumagalli started
washing machine production, making them the centre and the strength of their manufacturing
activity. Unstoppable, in 1954 Candy made a decisive move in washing traditions:
the birth of the Bi-Matic, the first semi-automatic washing machine with a spinner.
Candy opened its first production plant abroad, in France. Just six years later,
the washing machine became completely automatic: Candy raced ahead on the road of
innovation.
While the washing machine was being refined, enriched and “learning” to save water
and energy, the Stipomatic, the first Candy dishwasher, was launched. Candy had
already progressed beyond washing machines... Niso Fumagalli, the originator of most
of the patents, was awarded an honorary degree in engineering by the University
of Genoa. In the 70s an important new phase started for Candy: that of acquiring
other Italian companies, starting with La Sovrana of Parma, a historic brand name
in the cooking sector and Kelvinator Italia, internationally famous for its refrigerators
and freezers. Candy also drew up an agreement with Kelvinator America to produce
and market domestic products with the American name all over the world.
There was another important advance in the 80s: the international expansion of Candy
and the further acquisition of prestigious European companies.
A brief rundown:
1980 - Candy acquires Kelvinator UK and its factory
at Bromborough, Wirral, England.
1985 - Two successful Italian brand names join
the Candy Group: Zerowatt, manufacturers of washing machines and tumble dryers,
and Gasfire, specialists in built-in cookers.
1987 - Candy acquires Rosiè res, one of the most
prestigious French companies in the manufacture of built-in cookers.
1992 - Candy acquires Mayc, an important Spanish
company producing top loading washing machines under the Otsein brand name.
1995 - Candy acquires Iberna, refrigeration specialists.
2004 - Production innovation never stops: launch
of the new Aquamatic washing machine range and the highly innovative Biocold Futura
refrigerators by Candy.
2004 - Hoover unveils the Top Vision and 7.5
kg Nextra washing machines. The leading new product in the floorcare range is The
One.
2004 - The new representative office in China
opens in Shangai. Total sales are up to € 945 million. Overall production amounts
to 5.6 million units.
2005 - Sixtieth anniversary of the presentation
of the first Candy washing machine, the Model 50. New milestones in product innovation:
the new range of Candy Activa washing machines is the result of 60-year experience,
delivering advanced performances and paying attention to the highest energy efficiency.
The new wash-dryer models handle 5+5 kg of laundry.
Hoover enters the built-in market: three new collections are distributed through
the retail and kitchen studio channels only. The Vapormate steam cleaners expand
the range of floorcare products.
Acquisition of the Vesta company, based in Kirov, Russia, manufacturer of the Vyatka
washing machines. Through the updating of production processes and product range,
the Group offers its three brands to Russian users: Vyatka, Candy, Hoover, with
complementary and differentiated market positioning.
The Podborany (Czech Republic) plant doubles the size and becomes the Group's only
manufacturing facility of refrigerators and freezers.
Despite the challenging market and economic scenario, the Group records further
growth: total sales are up to € 1 billion and production volumes top 6 million units.
Candy now has plans all over the world: China, Turkey, Ivory Coast, Syria, Nigeria,
Egypt, Russia...
Today, Candy, strengthened by its long and comprehensive experience in the domestic
appliance sector, plays a leading role in the international field. It is in the
forefront of new technological developments, always attentive to the needs of the
modern consumer and sensitive to the needs of a new family lifestyle whose priorities
are relationships, the freedom to develop them and the time to nurture them.
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