Rangemaster: Thanks a million 4 th March 2015 Home made in Leamington Spa 1,000,000 range cookers
Sidney Flavel s factory in Leamington Spa Rangemaster factory in Leamington Spa today
Welcome to Rangemaster Thanks a million Rangemaster s Leamington Spa factory is the home of range cooking. Back in 1830 Sidney Flavel made the first range cooker, the Kitchener, in the Eagle foundry the same site on which a new modern generation of range cookers was introduced in 1995. The Rangemaster was a tremendous and immediate success heralding a new concept in domestic cooking for today s families. Today, 1,000,000 of these ranges have been made, mostly leaving Leamington Spa with a Rangemaster badge, but we also make products under the Falcon, Mercury and La Cornue brands - all members of the iconic AGA family. What started quietly, with more hope than expectation of rapid sales growth soon became a core brand of the AGA Rangemaster Group. Of 1,000,000 range cookers, over 20% have been for export. Now with gathering momentum in Germany and a launch underway in China, the prospects are good to accelerate in our journey to 2,000,000 range cookers - all home made in Leamington Spa. William McGrath, Chief Executive, AGA Rangemaster Group plc Rangemaster Mercury Falcon La Cornue
The range starts here In 1830 the entrepreneur, Sidney Flavel, realised that traditional forms of cooking over open fires made the control of cooking temperatures almost impossible and that food was often spoilt by soot and fumes. His Kitchener range successfully isolated the heat source from the hotplates and ovens, which could easily be temperature controlled. Food quality and taste were immediately transformed whilst the central fireplace still provided its desirable room heating function. Sidney Flavel s 1830s Kitchener
The original concept was an immediate success and in 1851 the Kitchener range won a prestigious Gold Medal at the Great Exhibition at London s Crystal Palace. Above and below: certificate and the medals awarded for the Kitchener. Prince Albert himself signed the certificate - part of our business archive. The Kitchener became a generic term for a cooking range and it won medals consistently at international exhibitions. In 1900 Queen Victoria, the King of Italy and the Emperor of Germany were all owners of Kitchener ranges.
As the Victorian era ended and technology adapted to the new demands of 20 th century living, we introduced gas and electricty powered products, notably gas fires, and both gas and electric cookers. The newly established gas and electricity utility companies set about demanding for appliances to be connected to their supply networks and their appliance retail outlets dominated the sector through to the 1960s. Flavels rose to the challenge by supplying the reliable quality products to the utilities that their customers demanded, ensuring leading positions in these expanding markets. The Leamington Spa factory continued to be the home of innovation, pioneering dual fuel cookers. The Flavel Debonair wood surround gas fire became the room heater of choice for the fashion conscious home makers of the 1960s. By 1965 over 500,000 Debonairs took pride of place in the nation s sitting rooms.
As the 20 th century was drawing to a close, de-nationalisation became the new political mantra and the gas and electricity utilities, who had closely controlled product quality through their retail outlets, withdrew from the appliance market. The company found itself facing increased competition from less The Rangemaster 110 efficient products, many of which were imported. The ambience of the AGA was used to redefine the range for the modern age and an opportunity was identified to introudce a high quality gas or electric range style cooker which could become the focal point in the newly emerging design led kitchens demanded by the increasing number of affluent home owners. The result was the Rangemaster 110. At 110cm wide it was effectively twice the width of a standard cooker and could offer an extended range of cooking options, with six burners or hotplates on the hob, two ovens, a separate grill area and even a handy storage drawer. The Rangemaster architecturally interesting 1960s concrete staircase
The Rangemaster was an immediate success. In September 1995 the Group Board reported : The initial response and enthusiasm from the marketplace is above our expectations. And by January 1996 the view was : The launch of the all electric 110 has been put back till March due to the fact that there would be little point in starting production of another variation when we cannot meet the demand for the gas version. The factory was reconfigured to meet demand. By 2001 Rangemaster was selling 40,000 cookers a year. To further its development the Board decided to sell its small cooker and fire brands because they were no longer profitable and capacity could be reallocated. Proceeds from the sale paid for a new development department and for factory refurbishment. There was a major marketing campaign as Rangemaster became not just a product line but the name of the Company. The range cooker was put firmly on the map. Rangemaster : an AGA company : Now we re cooking. At first all the ranges were 110cm. But then came the breakout moment of the 90cm product with the long tall oven : such great capacity in a small space. The 90cm cooker now provides half of all sales. We also now have 100cm products with a large second oven making it, for cost and capacity, the product that really punches its weight.
For all electric homes, there were electric hob options, initially ceramic hobs were offered followed by induction heated hobs which sister company Falcon had already developed for commercial cookers. The Rangemaster 110 created a whole new market sector. Designers stopped crafting kitchens which simply left a blank space to house a standard cooker. Today s kitchen designs often disguise other appliances behind facades but the range cooker stands centre stage, and the savvy 21st century designer starts with the range as a centre point. Such has been the influence and impact of the Rangemaster concept. Today, you expect a kitchen lifestyle magazine to feature a range cooker, a sector in which AGA, Rangemaster, Falcon, Mercury and La Cornue (all members of the AGA family) are at home.
Rangemaster at Leamington - today Rangemaster has deep engineering roots and skills. Product quality is everything. In recent years a succession of initiatives have been made in the process-driven Leamington factory to keep Rangemaster well ahead in its marketplace. Alongside traditional heavy presses we now see lasers and automatic welders. Inefficient paint dipping tanks are gone; replaced by the robotic controls of the enamelling process. Where large areas were once occupied by part finished work-in-progress, there is now a continuous product flow with sub-assemblies brought to the final assembly and inspection line on a just in time basis. This reformation in manufacturing processes still allows us to produce each cooker to an individual specification to service all the variations required by our widening markets and increasingly discriminating customer base.
The Heart of the Home The idea that the heart of the home is the kitchen with a range at its heart was established by AGA in the 1930s. It is something AGA has emphasised ever since and Rangemaster have picked up the theme. It suggests that the somewhat soulless stainless look of the built-in kitchen which is in the Frankfurt kitchen tradition dating from the 1930s does have a rival approach. Our mission is to be an effective rival outside the UK as well as the market leader in the UK. Today, many of the cookers manufactured in Leamington Spa are sold and distributed outside the UK. Ireland became a major market. France has seen Rangemaster under the Falcon brand become a significant market. Eight years ago you could not buy a range at the 2,000 / 3,000 level there was nothing to buy. Now we have high hopes for Germany where our distributor, CoolGiants, are rapidly growing our display base and consumer interest is on the rise. In China, Beijing Hi Seasons, are launching our products under the Redfyre brand on 27th March. We have another opportunity to see the excitement achieved when Rangemaster was first launched. In so doing, we have used our gas burner technology to develop products for the Far East, in particular a powerful wok burner system that is controllable with precision whatever cooking style is required. 1 st Leamington Spa made cooker to be sold in China
Leamington : our range of range cookers In Leamington Spa we manufacture range cookers for a number of our brands within the AGA Rangemaster Group, all of which have their own individual style and features. The products are sold in continental Europe, under our Falcon brand, and are now to be sold in China under the Redfyre brand. Falcon has a long history in the commercial foodservice sector, and is the market leader in heavy duty 6 burner ranges. Falcon is the product the professional chef wants both in his workplace and in his home. Mercury - acquired in 2010 - is a style statement originally designed by Seymour Powell - the direct heir of Raymond Lowey, the famed industrial designer and the AGA design consultant in the 1930s. Our Paris based company, La Cornue, manufactures their popular vaulted oven ranges but all the other cookers sold by La Cornue are manufactured in Leamington Spa. La Cornue cooker
Rangemaster Hi-Lite cooker Falcon cooker
The Governor of The bank of England, Mark Carney, visits Rangemaster.
Above: William McGrath, AGA Rangemaster Group Chief Executive and Shaun Smith, AGA Rangemaster Group Finance Director with the Kitchener 110 and the original Kitchener in Rangemaster reception. Unveiling of a blue plaque on the house Sidney Flavel used to live in at 24 Newbold Terrace, Leamington Spa.
In 2011 Rangemaster won Manufacturing Company of the Year - William McGrath, Chief Executive AGA Rangemaster Group and Gary Green, AGA Rangemaster Managing Director receiving the award. The 500,000 th cooker : a Kitchener 110 DF.
In 2014 Rangemaster re-entered the slot-in market with product made to its specification and sourced overseas.
Thanks a million
www.rangemaster.co.uk