Vitamix

Vitamix
Private
Industry Blenders
Founded 1921
Headquarters Olmsted Township, Ohio, U.S.
Number of employees
 900
Website www.vitamix.com

Vitamix, privately owned and operated by the Barnard family since 1921, manufactures blenders to consumers, andto the restaurant and hospitality industry. Vitamix is located in Olmsted Township, Ohio; the company employs more than 900 people and assembles products in Northeast Ohio.

History

Vitamix is privately owned and operated by the Barnard family. William Grover Barnard began the company in 1921, when he started traveling the country selling modern kitchen products. Cnet wrote that Barnard released his company's first blender in 1937, but it wasn't until television came around that Vita-Mix was able to introduce blenders to Americans. In 1949, Vitamix ran what the company says was the first-ever infomercial—before long, blenders were flying off of the shelves, and Vitamix was rerunning the ad in markets across the country.[1][2]

In 2005, Iron Chef America premiered on the Food Network, and Michael Symon brought his Vitamiix with him in a suitcase to the show.[3]

In February 2006, Blendtec sued Vitamix Corporation for infringing its patents on Blendtec’s “Wild Side” jar design, which Vitamix had copied as its own MP and XP containers. The court concluded Vitamix had infringed Blendtec’s patents, and awarded Blendtec total damages of approximately $24 million, the largest patent-related penalty in the history of Utah.[4]

Products

Vitamix products are built in the United States.[5] The latest model is the Vitamix Professional Series 750, which has five pre-programmed settings, including a self-cleaning option.

References

  1. ↑ "A muscle car for your kitchen", Vitamix, October 29, 2013
  2. ↑ Price, Catherine (2014). "Vitamix: A history of the company and analysis of the blender’s appeal.". slate.com. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  3. ↑ "The Cult of Vitamix", BusinessWeek, December 19, 2013
  4. ↑ Vitamix Infringement Case Summary
  5. ↑ "Vitamix.com", Vitamix

External links


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