Whirlpool Corporation Goes Global

As the 20th Century drew to a close, the appliance market in the U.S. began to mature. Growth at home would be measured in fractions of percentages.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the world, trade barriers fell and new capitalist societies flourished. In this environment, Whirlpool Corporation made a historic decision: To continue to focus on its historical product line of major home appliances, but to expand its business into rapidly growing markets throughout North and South America, Europe — and later, Asia.

In 1987, Whirlpool Corporation and Sundaram-Clayton of India formed TVS Whirlpool Limited to make compact washers for the Indian market (Whirlpool Corporation would acquire majority ownership in 1994). Later, the company built a manufacturing plant in Pondicherry, India.

In 1989, Whirlpool Corporation and N.V. Philips of the Netherlands formed a joint venture company, Whirlpool Europe B.V., to manufacture and market appliances in Europe. Whirlpool Corporation became the sole owner of the venture two years later.

The company remained active in North America as well, expanding its brand base by purchasing the KitchenAid division of the Hobart Corporation (1986) and acquiring the Roper brand name in 1989.

The three-tiered brand structure now gave customers a clear choice of high-end (KitchenAid), popular (Whirlpool) and value-oriented (Roper) home appliances.

In 1988, Whirlpool Corporation and Vitro, S.A. form Vitromatic S.A. de C.V., a joint venture to produce and market appliances for the Mexican and export markets. Soon after, Whirlpool Corporation consolidated all its North American operations to form its North American Appliance Group.

The global and domestic efforts would bear fruit: Revenues exceeded $6 billion by the end of the decade.