The Popular Kitchen Appliance Company Actually Owned By A Chinese Business

Your appliances are some of the most important items in your kitchen. Granted, you might not actively use the range, microwave, or coffee maker every day, and certain highly specialized appliances may be pricey kitchen upgrades that aren't worth buying. However, you rely on your refrigerator to keep your food cold and frozen until you're ready to eat it.

One of the major brands consumers have come to depend on for durability and performance is GE Appliances. It has U.S. roots that go back decades. But did you know that nowadays it's actually owned by Haier Group, a Chinese company?

GE Appliances was created as a division of General Electric Company, a multinational conglomerate born of a series of mergers in 1892, based out of Boston, Massachusetts. In June 2016, though, the branch announced that Qingdao Haier Co., Ltd. acquired it for $5.6 billion. Qingdao Haier is a subsidiary of Haier Group, a leading global provider of home appliances based out of Qingdao, China. It has undergone name changes over the years, leading up to the current moniker Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. Despite its ownership status, GE Appliances has remained an America-based manufacturer with a Louisville, Kentucky, headquarters since it was consolidated there in the 1950s.

Used in half of the homes across the country, GE Appliances established roots as a division of General Electric Company in 1907 with the launch of its first full line of cooking and heating devices. The brand introduced the first range with an insulated oven and surface in 1913, then the first hermetically electric refrigerator in 1925. That was quickly followed with the first GE monitor top refrigerator in 1927 — the same year the first modern dishwasher was made.

More interesting (and impressive), though, is that GE Appliances was one of the first businesses to develop an industrial park in the U.S. Appliance Park was established in 1951, utilizes 750 acres in Louisville, Kentucky, and has its own zip code.

Since then, GE Appliances has continued to innovate and improve the industry of home appliances with advanced technologies — from major and small devices to laundry, air, and water systems. Some can even offer a sleek aesthetic. Among the best kitchen design tips learned from celebrities is that stainless steel finishes create a chic, mature environment like in Tyrese Gibson's kitchen. GE Appliances has those finishes in spades across its Café, Monogram, Hotpoint, and GE Profile product lines.

Haier Group was founded in 1984 as Qingdao Refrigerator General Factory. After some stock share changes and consolidations over the years, it has taken the name Haier Group Company.

Through all of this, though, it's been focused on producing household appliances that make people's lives better. In 2019, its subsidiary Qingdao Haier officially became Haier Smart Home, allowing the multifaceted company to expand its cutting-edge technologies beyond imagination.

Haier products are renowned around the world — from Asia to the Middle East and Africa to Europe. Like GE Appliances in the States, a slew of kitchen appliances are made under the Haier brand — refrigerators, dishwashers, microwaves, ranges, and even beverage centers. On top of that, the company manufactures air conditioners, heat pumps, dehumidifiers, and bath fans. Plus, since GE Appliances and Haier are owned under the same umbrella, they're often found together in appliance stores.