THE APPLIANCE REVOLUTION: Past, present, future

By Moe Lastfogel
Director of Sales and Marketing for The Retail Observer

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Moe Lastfogel

Since the mid-1800s, people have been thinking of new and innovative ways to store food, cook food and clean up after eating. Many of these ideas were good enough to be used to this very day, yet inventors are striving to come up with new products that are more even more efficient and innovative.

Although stoves (wood fired) have been around since the 1400s, the first gas stoves were invented in the early 1850s, and by 1912, gas stoves were being challenged by electric stoves. Today, consumers have a choice between gas and electric, depending on cooking style and utility cost preferences. Recently steam injection, hot air impingement, sous-vide and microwave assist have been added to the stoves to create faster, more uniform cooking. As we are getting further into the age of innovation, I can see electric ovens that might incorporate induction into the internal oven workings as the heating source.

If the stove was the most important kitchen appliance product of the 1800s, the refrigerator must be the most important appliance of the 1900s. Although the idea of cooling foods dates back to ancient Rome, the precursor for the modern electric refrigerator was patented in 1914. Now there are hot water and coffee dispensers, ice cream makers and beer and wine taps and media centers installed in refrigerator units. As we progress, I see blast chillers and more means of inventory management being added to these food preservation machines.

The dishwasher has become an integral part of any American kitchen. While some still consider this appliance to be a luxury product rather than a necessity, the majority of American households have a dishwasher. The first patent for an appliance that resembles the modern dishwasher occurred in 1850 by Joel Houghton. Today we have new speed cycles, larger capacities, steam and special racking , and I think the future holds cold-water cleaning, ultrasonic washing and of course, the all-important fish and vegetable steaming button.

Kitchen appliances are so helpful, we wonder how we functioned before their invention, and we are eagerly await the next new thing to make our lives more hassle-free. With creative minds and the public’s acceptance, the future possibilities of kitchen appliances are endless. Who knows? A photon cooker or perhaps the Star Trek food replicator are in our near future.

Happy Retailing,
Moe Lastfogel
​moe@retailobserver.com

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