About Peter McInnes

Peter McInnes Pty Ltd was established over 40 years ago, and for the last two decades has been a large supplier of hospitality catering equipment and supplies including KitchenAid Commercial & Domestic.

1908 When Henry Ford introduced the Model T, creating affordable transportation for the man in the street, Herbert Johnston, an engineer from a small midwest town (Troy, Ohio) watched a baker mix bread dough with a heavy iron spoon and decided there had to be a better way. He put his engineering skills to work to develop what became the first commercial mixer.

1914 The Panama Canal opened and the Hobart model H, and 80-quart capacity giant, went on the market. 1914 also saw the introduction of the Hobart model C-10 mixer, described as "suitable for home use". However, its 10-quart capacity proved impractical for home applications. 1915 The Frank L. Hall Company Bakery ordered its first model H mixer. Life became much easier for the master bakers !

1916 The U.S. Navy commissioned three new battleships, the California, Tennessee, and South Carolina, and ordered Hobart mixers for their galleys.

1917 The model H mixer was specified as standard equipment for all U.S. Navy ships. Hobart engineers, encouraged by the continued success of the commercial mixer, embarked on a new program to develop a mixer for home use. But, with the entry of the United States into World Way I, Hobart, along with most other U.S. manufacturers, converted to war work and the program was put on hold.

1918 With the end of the war, Hobart production returned to civilian goods and work on the home mixer program resumed. 1919 The Hobart model H-5, the home mixer with the unique planetary mixing action that is a KitchenAid exclusive, was introduced. When wives of Hobart executives tested the H-5, one remarked, "I don't care what you call it, it's the best kitchen aid I've ever had". From that day forward, that brand name has been the KitchenAid trademark; it was registered with the U.S. Patent Office in 1919. The H-5 was produced at a rate of four a day in Hobart's Springfield, Ohio, facility, where, just as it is today, quality was the over riding concern in the production of KitchenAid mixers. Incidentally, the first H-5's, which included a juicer attachment, went on the market priced at $189.50? about $1900 in today's dollars.

In the early years, retailers were slow to take on the KitchenAid mixer. To counter their reluctance, Hobart established a direct sales force made up primarily of women who went door to door offering demonstrations of the new food preparation tool. With the creation of citrus juicer and food grinder attachments in 1919, KitchenAid mixers were on the road to becoming the versatile "food preparation tools", as they were subsequently styled. Today's KitchenAid stand mixers can be converted to anything from a pasta maker to a sausage stuffer or grain mill with the addition of optional attachments.

1923 Commercial radio became a reality. Paul Whiteman debuted George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. And an advertising campaign for the KitchenAid home mixer was launched in national media, including the highly respected Good Housekeeping and The Saturday Evening Post.

1927 Lindbergh made his successful solo flight across the Atlantic. Babe Ruth hit 60 home runs. And, John H. Smitzler, a New York salesman, also set a record, selling seven KitchenAid mixers in one day. The KitchenAid model G, more compact and 50% lighter than model H-5, was introduced. Priced at only $111.00, it represented an even greater value than the model H-5. The same capacity and power as the H-5, the G experienced immediate popularity, selling 20,000 units in its first three years on the market? almost twice the number of model H-5's sold between 1919 and 1927, the year the H-5 was discontinued.

Among the early users of KitchenAid stand mixers, were such famous names as John Barrymore, Marion Davies, E.I. DuPont, Henry Ford, Myrna Loy, Federick March, Ginger Rogers, and New York Governor Al Smith. 1930 With the development of three new models, KitchenAid moved to make its food preparers more affordable. Model F was advertised at $89.80 in a November issue of the The Saturday Evening Post.

1932 Model A, or the Kaidette, was introduced. Only 2000 Kaidettes, which were on the market through 1936, were produced. Models M and R were also introduced in 1932, with production discontinued in 1933.

1936 KitchenAid Manufacturing Co. came back under the Hobart banner as the company acquired "full ownership and control" of mixer operations. Nationally acclaimed editor and designer, Egmont Arens, was retained to design three new mixer models.

1937 Arens-designed model K was introduced. In August, two home coffee mills, models A-9 and A-10, also designed by Arens, joined the KitchenAid product lineup. KitchenAid production was moved to Dayton, Ohio.

1941 On the eve of World War II, model K5A was introduced. All three Arens-designed mixers are virtually unchanged today. They appear in many museums and have won awards for outstanding design.

1946 The end of World War II saw the resumption of peace-time production, which was moved from Dayton to Greenville. 1955 KitchenAid mixers appeared in new colors at the Atlantic City Housewares Show? Petal Pink, Sunny Yellow, Island Green, Satin Chrome, and Antique Copper. (Interestingly, pastel colors for the kitchen were touted as "new" at the Chicago Housewares Show this past January).

1962 4.5 quart capacity model K45 was introduced. The most popular KitchenAidKitchenAid mixer ever, the K45 is still an important model in the line.

1986 Whirlpool Corporation acquired KitchenAid from Dart and Kraft.

1992 KitchenAid blenders joined the KitchenAid line of portable appliances.

1994 KitchenAid portable appliances began to appear in bold colors. Today, cooks can choose many models in Empire Red, Empire Green, Cobalt Blue, Onyx Black, almond Cream, Majestic yellow, and Imperial Grey, as well as, White and White on White. Whirlpool Corporation announced that it would construct a new world-class plant for the production of KitchenAid portable appliances in Greenville, Ohio. The 12.5 million dollar, 185,000 square food facility was designed to occupy 47 acres. In Europe the establishment of the European Monetary Institute (EMI) was created and also Brussles (Belgium) became the headquarters for KitchenAid in Europe.

1996 Expansion of the product range for professional users. Introduction of the MVSA vegetable slicer and shredder by Messerschmidt (with Zyluss components)

1999 Introduction of the blenders in Europe and the Marcato pasta machine from Italy.

2002 The 21st century will continue to see KitchenAid portable appliances at the forefront in product innovation and quality.

Today, the legacy of quality lives on, not only in the multi-functional Stand Mixer, but in the full line of kitchen appliances sold across the world. Every KitchenAid product is guaranteed to be strong, reliable and versatile, each backed with a history of quality and excellence.