What Country Do My Appliances Come From?

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Keep in mind, some of these brands may now be owned by a company from another country. But they all had to start somewhere…

Appliance brands – Country of origin

Where are your appliances made?

Asko

Asko is a Swedish company, part of the Gorenje Group, producing a number of kitchen and laundry products. These include ovens, cooktops, rangehoods, and dishwashers, while in the laundry space Asko offers both washers and dryers. You can expect many Asko appliances to now be made in Slovenia given that the Gorenje Group is a Slovenian whitegoods manufacturer.

Bosch

Robert Bosch GmbH, more commonly known as ‘Bosch’, is a German multinational engineering and electronics company. It offers all types of appliances from ovens and dishwashers to washing machines and dryers. Almost every range will boast an appliance made in Germany, but others including dishwashers, ovens, and cooktops may be manufactured in Turkey, Italy, or Spain.

Breville

Breville is an Australian manufacturer of small home appliances, founded in Sydney. The first to create the original sandwich toaster, Breville also provides juicers and blenders, kettles and toasters, as well as fryers pans, microwaves, and coffee machines.

De’Longhi

The Italian brand De’Longhi manufactures a number of small appliances. It’s the parent company of two other brands including Braun and Kenwood. In the De’Longhi range, you can find coffee machines, kettles, portable heaters, ovens, cooktops, fridges, and more. However, the main De’Longhi appliances offered in New Zealand are coffee machines, grinders and grills.

Dyson

Dyson is a British technology company. While best known for its vacuum cleaners, Dyson also produces various haircare appliances, including hair dryers, as well as portable heaters and air treatments such as humidifiers. Until 2002, Dyson vacuums were made in Wiltshire, England. However, production has now been transferred to Malaysia. Dyson also has plants in Singapore, China, and the Philippines.

Electrolux

Swedish multinational home appliance manufacturer Electrolux also owns a number of other brands, including AEG, Chef, Dishlex, Kelvinator, Simpson, Westinghouse, and Zanussi. You’ll find some of the company’s products, including washers and dryers made in Thailand. Electrolux refrigerators are built in Mexico. It’s not clear whether or not any appliances from these brands are still made in Europe or not.

Fisher & Paykel

Fisher & Paykel is a New Zealand appliance manufacturing company owned by Haier – a Chinese whitegoods manufacturer. Fisher & Paykel was purchased by Haier in 2012. It produces a range of appliances including ovens, cooktops, and fridges, as well as washers and dryers. While manufacturing has ceased in New Zealand, its new products are stated to be designed in New Zealand. Some of Fisher & Paykel’s washing machines and dishwashers are stated to be made in China and Thailand, while other products are outsourced from countries including Mexico, China, and Italy.

Gaggenau

Named after a town in Germany, Gaggenau is a luxury brand for professional-grade home appliances. Currently a subsidiary of Bosch, the majority of its appliances are also made in Germany. It produces a range of appliances including ovens, cooktops and dishwashers.

Hisense

Chinese multinational brand Hisense manufactures a large range of major appliances and electronics, including fridges and TVs. It’s stated to have dozens of manufacturing facilities in China and several outside of China, including Hungary, South Africa, Mexico, Egypt, Algeria, and France.

LG

LG is a South Korean multinational electronics company manufacturing products from mobile phones and TVs to washing machines and refrigerators. Some washing machines are said to be made in China, while some air conditioners are stated to be made in South Korea. LG’s primary production vendor for fridges and washers is stated to be in the Indian subcontinent.

Miele

German manufacturer Miele is well-known for selling high-end domestic appliances and commercial equipment. It manufactures all kinds of appliances including ovens, cooktops, coffee machines, fridges, and washers. It has a total of 14 production centres in Europe, including Germany and Romania, with Miele vacuums, dishwashers and washer-disinfectors stated to be developed in Germany.

Panasonic

Panasonic is a Japanese multinational electronics company, manufacturing many appliances such as TVs, washing machines and microwaves. Its current operations take place in Japan, Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

Philips

Koninklijke Philips N.V. or Philips for short, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation which offers kitchen and home appliances, baby products, personal care items, TV monitors, and home audio equipment. The brand’s consumer electronics and household appliances are manufactured mainly in Asia, but there are also manufacturing facilities in the Middle East.

Samsung

Samsung is a South Korean multinational brand, producing a range of products including microwaves and dishwashers. Samsung’s Washer Dryer combos and fridges are said to be manufactured in South Korea. There are also some front-load washing machines stated to be made in China, with certain fridge models made in Thailand. One Samsung curved TV model is also made in Vietnam.

Sharp

Sharp is another Japanese multinational corporation that designs and manufactures electronic products. There are 27 manufacturing operations across 26 countries. Some of its microwave ovens and fridges are said to be manufactured in Thailand and China. Taiwan is also an integral country for Sharp, now owned by the Foxconn Technology Group.

Smeg

Smeg is a high-end domestic appliance manufacturer, founded in Italy. The company sells fridges, dishwashers, washing machines, ovens, and more. The design and manufacture of these products are concentrated in three locations across northern Italy. It operates 16 subsidiaries in countries including the UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, South Africa, USA, Australia, and Mozambique. Smeg also has offices in Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia.

Sony

The last Japanese multinational corporation on our list is Sony. It has a diverse range of products which include consumer electronics such as TVs, entertainment, gaming, and financial services. Sony’s plants can be found in Japan, Mexico, and Slovakia, with parts imported from Brazil, Spain, China, Malaysia, and Ecuador.

Sub Zero

Sub Zero is an American appliance company, which originally sold only freezers and later on, refrigerators. Nowadays Sub Zero also sells a range of kitchen necessities, including cooktops, ovens and coffee machines. However, only refrigerators, fridge-freezers and wine chillers are available in New Zealand. All Sub Zero appliances are manufactured in its own American facilities.

TCL

TCL is a Chinese multinational electronics company, selling mobile phones, TVs, and air conditioners, as well as washing machines and fridges. TCL operates across Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, Northern, and South America, and has 20 major manufacturing facilities. While the global company originated in 1981, TCL Australia was founded in 2004.

Westinghouse

The last brand on our list is Westinghouse, an American home appliance company, acquired by the Electrolux group in 1986. It offers products including fridges, microwaves, cooktops, dishwashers, and ovens. While some products are stated to be manufactured in Australia, including its ovens, others are imported from Europe, China, and South-East Asia. In particular, some fridges are claimed to be from Thailand and some dishwashers from Turkey. Westinghouse freezers, cooktops, and rangehoods are made in China.

Does it matter if your appliances are foreign-made?

Often the perception is that appliances made in Europe and Australia will be superior to those made in Asia or other parts of the world. This is, at least in part, down to the marketing of some companies that like to promote the origin of some products, but less so others. You’ll often read or hear about products being made in Italy or Germany, but these same companies seem less inclined to promote their goods as Chinese-made, for example.

Knowing where your whitegoods actually come from – and where your money is going – is important to many Kiwis. However, it’s wise not to judge the quality of an appliance purely on where it was made. There is no reason why appliances made in India or Thailand, for example, can’t be as good as those made in places like the UK or Sweden. Try to judge each case, and brand, on its own merit, and find out what other New Zealand consumers think about the appliances they own and use before jumping to any conclusion.

About the reviewer of this page

This report was reviewed by Canstar Content Producer, Caitlin Bingham. Caitlin is an experienced writer whose passion for creativity led her to study communication and journalism. She began her career freelancing as a content writer, before joining the Canstar team.