Retail Observer

March 2015

The Retail Observer is an industry leading magazine for INDEPENDENT RETAILERS in Major Appliances, Consumer Electronics and Home Furnishings

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RETAILOBSERVER.COM MARCH 2015 10 I n the summer of 1945, with the war in Europe over and the Pacific war soon to end, he founded Sub-Zero Freezer Company, making his tiny enterprise one of the first new companies in the giant postwar boom in home technology and design. Seventy years later, that little Midwestern startup – now a household name worldwide – is still in the Bakke family, still drawing inspiration from leading figures in the design and architecture communities, and still pioneering technical innovations that are ahead of their time. "We've never pushed gimmicks or chased passing fads. All of our design and engineering are aimed at meaningful innovations that contribute to the life of the home," says Jim Bakke, Westye's grandson and president and CEO of the company. "There's a phrase we use inside the company to describe what we're trying to create through our products - moments worth savoring in the home. Those moments come through enjoying better food, from living in a space that's designed exactly the way you want it, and from owning nice things that keep serving you well for many, many years. We've never compromised on quality. My grandfather said that Sub-Zero would build only the highest-quality products and that as long as we did, we'd always have customers." But would Sub-Zero always have enough customers? That was a question many were asking when Jim Bakke took the reins of the company in 1989. Certainly Sub-Zero had remained innovative. Jim's father, Bud (who became the company's second CEO), was an early advocate of the "total kitchen" concept promoted by cabinet companies in the 1950s. Refrigeration, he recognized, could be built into not only kitchen cabinets but also credenzas, end tables, and bar counters. Under his leadership, Sub-Zero became, in "All of our design and engineering are aimed at mean SUB-ZERO AT { 70 } 70

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