Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM MARCH 2015 12 T hey found it 2,000 miles west of Madison in Los Angeles. There, in the 1930s, while Westye Bakke was building refrigeration for America's greatest architect, brothers Al and Hyman Wolf were building ranges for America's greatest chefs. Their company would eventually become famous for performance and durability in the most demanding commercial kitchens. In its origins and philosophy, Wolf was very much like Sub-Zero. It was, however, virtually unknown as a consumer brand. In 2000, Jim Bakke negotiated the sale of Wolf's consumer line to Sub-Zero and set out to make the Wolf name famous among designers and homeowners for the same reasons Sub-Zero was famous, only at the opposite end of the temperature spectrum. Built in a new, state-of-the-art factory on the outskirts of Madison – its nearest neighbor is an organic farm – Wolf took the kitchen-design and cooking worlds by storm, winning rave reviews and gobbling up market share. Wolf's growth and Sub-Zero's renewed vigor were aided by yet another audacious strategy: reducing, not expanding, the brands' distribution. "Designers, architects, builders, specialty retailers – those were always our best partners," Jim Bakke said. "They get who we are and what we stand for." The company pulled out of mass retail channels, cultivated relationships with trade professionals and specialty stores, and built elaborate showrooms to support the trade. Then came 2008. As the global recession suppressed consumers' appetite for new appliances, Jim again led Sub-Zero and Wolf on an aggressive course. Instead of pulling back and pinching pennies, the company invested heavily in innovation. Like his grandfather, who had anticipated demand for refrigeration after the war, Jim anticipated hunger for innovative new appliances in the housing recovery. When the turnaround came, Sub-Zero was ready. The company launched more than 70 new products in three years as part of its new generation. For the Sub-Zero brand, they include a reimagined built-in line, unique new sizes of integrated refrigeration, and redesigned wine storage. Meanwhile, Wolf introduced its sleekest, most advanced built-in ovens yet, gas and induction cooktops with major design and performance upgrades, a convection steam oven whose recipe capabilities border on the uncanny, and a built-in automatic coffee system with a drink repertoire rivaling that of a veteran barista. As it begins its eighth decade, the company is diversifying yet again. Coming to market this year will be the first products from Wolf Gourmet, a line of countertop appliances, cookware, and cutlery embodying the same emphasis on workmanship and precision control as their larger Wolf counterparts. It all makes this venerable company's 70th birthday, as Jim Bakke might say, a moment worth savoring in its own right. SUB-ZERO AT { 70 } 70

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