Cuisinart
US home appliance brand
title: "Cuisinart" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1989-mergers-and-acquisitions", "american-brands", "american-companies-established-in-1971", "companies-based-in-stamford,-connecticut", "companies-that-filed-for-chapter-11-bankruptcy-in-1989", "companies-that-have-filed-for-chapter-11-bankruptcy", "cooking-appliance-brands", "electronics-companies-established-in-1971", "home-appliance-brands", "home-appliance-manufacturers-of-the-united-states", "knife-manufacturing-companies", "manufacturing-companies-based-in-connecticut", "manufacturing-companies-established-in-1971"] description: "US home appliance brand" topic_path: "engineering" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuisinart" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary US home appliance brand ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox company"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Cuisinart |
| logo | Cuisinart logo.svg |
| type | Subsidiary |
| foundation | |
| founder | Carl Sontheimer |
| location_city | Stamford, Connecticut |
| location_country | US |
| industry | Consumer Goods |
| parent | Conair Corporation (1989–present) |
| products | Cookware, ovenware, kitchen tools, kitchen accessories |
| homepage | |
| :: |
| name = Cuisinart | logo = Cuisinart logo.svg | type = Subsidiary | foundation = | founder = Carl Sontheimer | CEO = | location_city = Stamford, Connecticut | location_country = US | industry = Consumer Goods | parent = Conair Corporation (1989–present) | products = Cookware, ovenware, kitchen tools, kitchen accessories | num_employees = | homepage =
Cuisinart ( ) is an American kitchen appliance and cookware brand. It was founded in 1971 by Carl Sontheimer. Initially the company produced food processors, which were introduced at a food show in Chicago in 1973. The name "Cuisinart" (a portmanteau of "cuisine" and "art") became synonymous with "food processor" to the point where it was a proprietary eponym. Cuisinart was purchased by Conair Corporation in 1989.
History
Cuisinart was founded in 1971 by Carl Sontheimer, a graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology who was inspired by his love of French food. Cuisinart introduced its machine in January 1973 at a trade show in Chicago, a reworked and rebranded Robot-Coupe / Magimix 1800 food processor for North America in 1973 under the Cuisinart brand. This was as America's first home kitchen food processor. The success of Cuisinart was limited at first, until a review in Gourmet magazine helped to lift sales.
Throughout the mid-1970s, Cuisinart sales rose due to the brand's association with celebrity chefs such as James Beard, a close friend of Sontheimer. Harrison made its products more functional for users with disabilities, designing larger fonts so that people with vision problems could see them.
By the mid-to-late 1980s, Cuisinart incurred financial troubles and suffered from falling sales. A group of investors bought Sontheimer's interest in the company in 1987 for $42 million. This led to Conair buying the company for $27 million in 1989.
Legal troubles with Robot-Coupe
In the late 1970s, a legal dispute between Robot-Coupe and Cuisinart began when Robot-Coupe started marketing home food processors in the US under their own brand name. Robot-Coupe hired Alvin Fineman, Cuisinart's former marketing director in 1979, as president. They engaged in competitive advertisements which specifically named Cuisinart; this resulted in a lawsuit. A US federal court enjoined Robot-Coupe from continuing that particular ad, so Fineman's campaign changed to "There are many food processors made in Japan. The original is still made in France."
Products
Products produced under the Cuisinart brand include:
- Air fryers
- Bakeware
- Handheld and standing blenders
- Bread machines
- Countertop blenders
- Brick ovens
- Can openers
- Coffeemakers
- Coffee grinders
- Convection ovens
- Cookware
- Cutlery
- Cutting boards
- Deep fryers
- Dutch ovens
- Espresso makers
- Food processors
- Grills, griddles
- Hand mixers
- Ice cream and sorbet makers
- Juice extractors
- Kettles
- Microwave ovens
- Popcorn makers
- Raclettes
- Rice cookers
- Scales
- Slow cookers
- Speciality appliances
- Stand mixers
- Toasters
- Toaster oven broilers
- Waffle makers
References
References
- Thomas, Robert McG. Jr.. (1998-03-26). "C. G. Sontheimer, Cuisinart Backer, Dies at 83". [[The New York Times]].
- (1989-12-28). "Conair Buys Cuisinart Line". The New York Times.
- Lewis, Vivian. (1977-07-31). "From France, the Cuisinart". The New York Times.
- "History of Cuisinart Corporation".
- (2012). "Thomas Lamb, Marc Harrison, Richard Hollerith and the Origins of Universal Design". Journal of Design History.
- (1981-05-18). "Blade Battle".
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