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Kelvinator was an American home appliance manufacturer and a line of that was the company's namesake. The name is from William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, who developed the concept of absolute zero, for whom the Kelvin temperature scale is named. The name was thought appropriate for a company that manufactured and refrigerators.
The company has changed ownership over the years, and the brand name has been licensed or sold in several nations. In the United States, Kelvinator Commercial, producing and servicing food service refrigerator and freezer products for commercial applications, is a part of the Electrolux Professional Group.
Wales, a young inventor, secured financial backing from Arnold Goss, then secretary of the Buick Automobile company, to develop the first household mechanical refrigerators to be marketed under the name "Electro-Automatic Refrigerating Company". After producing many experimental models, Wales selected one for manufacturing.
In February 1916, the name of the business was changed to "Kelvinator Company" in honor of the Irish-Scottish physicist, Lord Kelvin (William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin), the discoverer of absolute zero. Kelvinator was among two dozen home refrigerators introduced to the U.S. market in 1916. In 1918, Kelvinator introduced the first refrigerator with any type of automatic control.
Frustrated by ice-boxes, the Grand Rapids Refrigerator Company introduced a porcelain-lined "Leonard Cleanable" ice cabinet. Kelvinator began buying Leonard's boxes for its electric refrigerated models. By 1923, the Kelvinator Company held 80% of the American market for electric refrigerators.
On July 3, 1925, Kelvinator bought Nizer Corporation in a tri-party merger valued at $20 million.
In 1926, the company acquired Leonard, which had been founded in 1881. Kelvinator concentrated its entire appliance production at the Grand Rapids factory in 1928. That year, George W. Mason assumed control of Kelvinator. Under his leadership, the company lowered its costs while increasing market share through 1936.
In 1936, Kelvinator introduced the "Kelvin Home", one of the earliest attempts to market in-home central air conditioning and heating to ordinary consumers. Customers could choose from several different home designs, all of which were equipped with climate control systems and the latest electric appliances, and were advertised to cost about $7,500 ($151,523 in 2022) for a six-room house. The first Kelvin Home shown to the public was located in Livonia, Michigan and attracted thousands of visitors. Several surviving homes are registered historic properties, including some in the Rosedale Gardens Historic District in Livonia and the Kelvinator House in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Italian manufacturer Candy bought the operation in 1979 together with the use of the Kelvinator brand name in the UK and produced both Candy and Kelvinator products until it closed around 2000.
In 1952, it acquired the Altorfer Bros. Company, which made home washing machine under the ABC brand name.
In Britain, Kelvinator of London contributed to the field of testing airplane components at ultra-low temperatures and instruments under high altitude conditions, research that was credited as saving the lives of many Allied aircrews.
The company pledged to introduce the scientific discoveries gained during the war production into its appliances to make them more useful and efficient.
Under the leadership of Roy D. Chapin Jr., AMC sold off its Kelvinator operations in 1968 to focus on automobiles. AMC then purchased the Jeep brand from Kaiser Industries in 1970.
Electrolux of Sweden acquired White Consolidated Industries in 1986, and combined WCI brands with Electrolux-owned Tappan to become WCI Major Appliances Group. In the early 1990s, the name of the Dublin, Ohio-based holding company changed to Frigidaire Company.
In 1997, it was reorganized into Electrolux North America Products. The brand is focused on commercial food service products under Kelvinator Commercial. Its products include bar equipment, chest freezers and reach-ins, glass door merchandisers, as well as food preparation and dipping cabinets.
The Kelvinator brand is used in Argentina for a wide variety of appliances marketed by Radio Victoria Fueguina in Tierra del Fuego. The factory is in this province.
In the Philippines, the Kelvinator brand was licensed in 1977 to Concepcion Industries (now Concepcion Industrial Corporation). The firm continues to sell major appliances under this brand.
In Australia, Kelvinator Australia Ltd was formed in 1934, and manufactured and distributed products under licence from several US companies, including Kelvinator. The managing director was William Queale, while his father-in-law, F.H. Griffiths, was a co-director. In 1980, they became part of the Australian-owned Email Limited group of companies, whose appliance division was subsequently sold to the Swedish-owned Electrolux Group in 2001. Refrigerators and air conditioners continue to be sold under the Kelvinator brand by the Electrolux Group.
As late as 2014, residents of Robeson County, North Carolina, used "Kelvinator" to generically refer to refrigerators, due to the former presence of a Kelvinator factory in their county. (2025). 9781469614373, The University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 9781469614373
In India, the Kelvinator brand was revived in 2019, when the retail arm of Reliance Retail signed a licensing, manufacturing, marketing and distribution deal with Electrolux. They marketed a range of appliances and major appliances under the Kelvinator brand. In 2025, Reliance Retail bought the Kelvinator brand in India from Sweden's Electrolux to strengthen its position in the consumer durables marketplace. The terms of the sale were not disclosed, but an Electrolux reported a gain of 180 million Swedish crowns (US$18.5 million) from these of the brand in India.
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