 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Consumer Goods |
| Founded | 1971; 54 years ago (1971) |
| Founder | Carl Sontheimer |
| Headquarters | , U.S. |
| Products | Cookware, ovenware, kitchen tools, kitchen accessories |
| Parent | Conair Corporation (1989–present) |
| Website | cuisinart |
Cuisinart (/ˈkwiːzɪnɑːrt/KWEE-zin-art) is an American kitchen appliance and cookware brand owned byConair Corporation. Cuisinart was founded in 1971 byCarl Sontheimer and initially producedfood processors, which were introduced at a food show inChicago in 1973.[1] The name "Cuisinart" became synonymous with "food processor." The brand's name is aportmanteau of "cuisine" and "art." Cuisinart was purchased byConair Corporation in 1989.[2]
Cuisinart was founded in 1971 byCarl Sontheimer, a graduate ofMassachusetts Institute of Technology who was inspired by his love of French food.[1] This led to the creation of Cuisinart and its main product, thefood processor.[3] Cuisinart introduced its machine in January 1973 at a trade show in Chicago, a reworked and rebranded Robot-Coupe / Magimix 1800 food processor for North America in 1973 under the Cuisinart brand. This was as America's first domesticfood processor.[4] The success of Cuisinart was limited at first, until a review inGourmet magazine helped to lift sales.[1] Later, Sontheimer contracted with a Japanese manufacturer to produce new models in 1977 in order to immediately launch his new Japanese-made food processor in 1980 when his contract with Robot-Coupe expired. Cuisinart continued to sell both the Japanese-sourced new machines and the original French-sourced machines for a time.[5]
Throughout the mid-1970s, Cuisinart sales rose due to the brand's association with celebrity chefs such asJames Beard, a close friend of Carl Sontheimer.[1] Cuisinart hired industrial designerMarc Harrison in the 1970s to design new products and improve other existing designs, many of the company's products became associated withuniversal design.[6] Harrison made its products more functional for users with disabilities, designing larger fonts so that people with vision problems could see them.[7]
By the mid-to-late 1980s, Cuisinart incurred financial troubles and suffered from falling sales. A group of investors bought Sontheimer's interest in the company in 1987 for $42 million. In August 1989, the company filed for bankruptcy.[8] This led to Conair buying the company for $27 million.[2]
In the late 1970s, a legal dispute between Robot-Coupe and Cuisinart began when Robot-Coupe started marketing home food processors in the US under their own brand name.[9] Robot-Coupe hired Alvin Fineman, Cuisinart's former marketing director in 1979,[9] who engaged in competitive advertisements that resulted in a lawsuit. A court enjoined Robot-Coupe from continuing that particular ad, so Finesman's campaign changed to: "There are many food processors made in Japan. The original is still made in France."[8]
Products produced under the Cuisinart brand include: