Retail Observer

JUNE 2015 RETAILOBSERVER.COM 9 C elebrating 50 years of Culinary Innovation, DACOR is the true embodiment of the American Dream. Anthony (Joseph) DeSousa, a Portuguese seaman, left his home in the Azores and headed to San Francisco. The year was 1848, and California had just declared its Statehood. He decided to set down roots and in doing so, the Joseph Family became a part of the California landscape and have been ever since. In 1933, almost a century later, the DACOR story begins, when a young entrepreneur, named Stanley Joseph, opened an appliance store that specialized in marketing the first electric refrigerators. Stan was able to create a market dominated by the "ice-box" through educating the consumer on the efficiency and cost saving benefits of electric refrigeration. In 1948, Stan, with his brother Anthony, began producing the first self-contained kitchen ventilation system and selling them under the brand name Stanthony Ventomatic. This revolutionary concept for circulating air and removing smoke and steam from the cooking area would forever change the functionality of the residential kitchen. Not stopping with ventilation, in 1955, Stan was awarded a patent for the first indoor Barbeque. In 1965, the Distinctive Appliance Corporation was founded and is now known the world over as DACOR. Recognized for his contribution to the Kitchen Industry, Stan was one of the first individuals to be inducted into the National Kitchen + Bath Association's Hall of Fame in 1989. In 1971, after graduating from Stanford University, and following their service with the US Marine Corps in Vietnam, brothers Michael and Anthony Joseph joined their father to run the family business. Eventually, Mike served as CEO and Tony as President. Under their leadership, DACOR's business grew at a rapid rate. Culinary innovation has always been the backbone of the DACOR experience. From the beginning, DACOR has introduced one cooking innovation after another, which has changed the way America cooks. Following in their father's footsteps, Tony and Mike were recognized by the NKBA for their contributions to the industry with their elections to the association's Hall of Fame in 2004. Today, DACOR embraces legacy, heritage and expertise as the third generation of the Joseph family takes the company into a new age of innovation and leadership. A HISTORY OF INNOVATION DACOR has introduced many product firsts that revolutionized the kitchen appliance industry forever. One of the most significant products was the 30" Pure Convection™, Self-Cleaning Built-in Wall Oven, released in 1987. This oven transformed DACOR's business and has since become the industry standard. Other industry firsts include the 30" dishwasher that could hold a 24 piece serving set, the first cooktop with continuous grates and the first "professional style" range with a clock, timers, and the first range with sealed burners for ease of cleaning. DREAM ' N California A L E G A C Y O F I N N O VAT I O N

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