Hobart celebrates 120 years in businesses

Equipment manufacturer Hobart has been celebrating its 120th year in business.

Founded in 1897 in Troy, Ohio in the US, as an electric motor company, with a vision to improve the efficiency and consistency of hand-powered kitchen equipment like coffee mills and meat grinders, it soon moved into manufacturing commercial food mixers.

In 1919, the Hobart Manufacturing Company Ltd registered in England, launching its very first dishwasher in 1928.

In 1950, the company name changed to the Hobart Mfg Co and then in 2002 to Hobart. In the same year it bought a factory in Barnstaple, North Devon, which is still in operation today

In the mid-seventies, a range of cooking equipment was also introduced, some of which is still made in Devon.

In the 1980's Hobart created a purpose built distribution and training centre capable of holding more than £8m of spare parts in Peterborough.

The company moved its entire UK operation to Cambridgeshire 13 years later, adding offices and meeting rooms to a state-of-the-art innovation centre and demo theatre.

"Today, our brand stands for exactly the same as it did in 1897. Pushing the boundaries of what is possible to produce class-leading catering equipment machines that always work for the benefit of kitchens. It’s an ethos that we will carry into the next 120 years of operation.”

Iain Munro takes the helm at Hobart Cooking Solutions

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