Hotpoint is a brand of domestic appliances. Ownership of the brand is split between American company Whirlpool, which has the rights in Europe,[1] Chinese company Haier, which has the rights in the Americas and Turkish company Arcelik which has rights in Russia and the CIS. History Pacific Electric Heating Company The company name Hotpoint comes from the hot point of the innovative first electric iron. Invented by American, Earl Richardson (1871–1934) in 1905, he subsequently formed his Pacific Electric Heating Co. in Ontario, California, in 1906.[2][3] The device became known as the Hotpoint iron, with its hottest point at the front and not the center. Hotpoint Hotpoint was founded in 1911 by Earl Richardson. Hotpoint Electric Heating Company In 1912, the company began making electric irons, and in 1919, electric cookers in the United States. Earl Richardson also invented the first iron that switched off automatically when a maximum temperature was reached. Hotpoint sign in Great Barrington, Massachusetts It is claimed to have developed one of the earliest electric toasters in 1908, known as the El Tosto, and later, under GE, the Hotpoint brand name became one of the most popular brands of toasters in the United States in the 1920s and 1930s. Richardson founded his settlement, Adelanto, California, in 1915. Edison Electric Appliance Company In 1918, the company, known as the Hotpoint Electric Heating Co., merged with the Heating Device Section of General Electric, becoming the Edison Electric Appliance Co. Hotpoint Electric Appliance Company In 1920, it established a joint venture with competitor General Electric, forming the Hotpoint Electric Appliance Co. Limited (HEAC) to market GE (USA) branded goods in the United Kingdom. Edison General Electric Company In 1927, GE bought the factory and entire company. It became known as the Edison General Electric Co. in 1931. Most Hotpoint production moved to GE's mammoth Appliance Park manufacturing complex in Louisville, Kentucky in the beginning of the 1950s. To this day, many Hotpoint appliances are made at Louisville, and as of 2013 was the largest appliance plant in the world.[4] GEC In 1929, HEAC joined the Associated Electrical Industries (AEI) group, itself bought by The General Electric Company in 1967. By the 1960s it was the market leader in household electrical appliances in the United Kingdom, followed by Sweden's Electrolux. GDA Hotpoint continued as a subsidiary of GEC until 1989, when it was merged into a new division of GEC called General Domestic Appliances (GDA). 50% of GDA was purchased by General Electric (USA), with whom it owned the joint venture. In 1998, the Redring and Xpelair brands also joined GDA, and Hotpoint was categorized as part of GDA Applied Energy. Indesit GEC was restructured into Marconi plc. from which Indesit Company (then called Merloni Elettrodomestici) took over and then Indesit was bought out by Hotpoint on 21 December 2001 for £121m.[5] At this point, Hotpoint employed around 7,000 people at its four sites in the United Kingdom, three of which later closed. Indesit UK has been based at Hotpoint headquarters in Peterborough since 1 June 2003. In 2005, Merloni Elettrodomestici rebranded to become Indesit Company. At the beginning of 2007, Indesit Company launched the group's new brand architecture, Hotpoint, and combined with Ariston to form the Hotpoint-Ariston brand. In December 2008, Indesit Company acquired the final quota of shares from General Electric for US$57m.[6] From the end of 2011, Indesit rolled out the Hotpoint brand name across Europe, replacing the names Ariston and Hotpoint Ariston. Whirlpool In October 2014, Whirlpool paid 56% of the purchased by for UK only marketing whilst Haier bought out 44% for US.[clarify][7] Whirlpool's had a turbulent ownership of Hotpoint and Indesit as in 2015, Indesit Company released a statement announcing a safety alert for certain models of tumble dryers produced between 2004 and 2015 due to a design flaw which caused large particles of lint to escape the fluff filter into the dryer and build up around the heating element bank which posed a risk of fire. In 2016, Whirlpool began sending out engineers to perform safety modifications to the recalled dryers. In July 2019, Whirlpool finally issued a recall for the appliances, stating that up to 800,000 machines would either be replaced or repaired. In December 2019, Whirlpool announced a safety recall for certain models of Hotpoint and Indesit washing machines manufactured between 2014 and 2018, due to faulty door interlocks that could cause the machines to catch fire. Haier In September 2014, Electrolux agreed to buy General Electric's household appliances business including the Hotpoint brand in North America for £2bn ($3.3bn). The deal was expected to close in 2015.[8] Due to blockage by U.S. regulators, the Electrolux deal was terminated, and GE subsequently sold its appliance division to Haier of China, to close in 2016.[9] Arcelik In 2022, Turkish white goods manufacturer Arcelik agreed to buy Whirpool's Russian arm including use of the Hotpoint brand. The deal included Whirlpool's sales operations in Kazakhstan and selected countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States. [10] In January 2023, Arcelik and Whirpool agreed to combine their European business with Arcelik owning a 75% share. The new entity will own rights to the Hotpoint brand in Europe.[11] In February 2024, Britain's antitrust regulator provisionally cleared the deal. This followed approved by EU antitrust regulators in October 2023.[12] Products Hotpoint was formed in 1911 in California and entered the British market in 1920. It is well known for its refrigerators and washing machines. The company, including sister brands Creda and Indesit, at one time produced the largest amount of kitchen appliances in the United Kingdom. The headquarters was in Woodston, Peterborough with about 1,500 people based there making fridges and freezers. The refrigeration plant closed in 2008.[13]