By Martin Vedris
SYDNEY: St George Appliances unveiled their new range of Australian designed and made ovens at the Powerhouse Museum this morning, celebrating the company’s 60 year anniversary with a rejuvenated product range and marketing campaign.
St George ovens have been the quiet achievers of cooking appliances in recent years, but at the peak the company was manufacturing hundreds of ovens per week. The company was founded in 1947 by Stan Shuetrium in his backyard in Bexley, Sydney. Initially manufacturing at a plant in the southern-Sydney suburb of Peakhurst, the factory eventually re-located to Chester Hill in Sydney, where it remains.
Kleenmaid bought the brand but did not develop it but in 2004, Woodland Home Products, founded by Peter Woodland, acquired St George Appliances from Kleenmaid. Woodland founded the Beefeater barbeque brand and was also one of the founders of the Barbeques Galore retail chain.
Now Woodland is very focused on growing and developing the St George Appliances business.
“With the brand being so successful and active for sixty years, we decided it was time to revitalise the St George product offering with a new range of ovens and more to follow,” said managing director, Peter Woodland.
The new range of St George ovens will replace the existing range of double, single and stretch ovens. The new product offering will appeal to modern Australian families looking for cutting edge design and superior cooking performance.
“This range really represents the very best of St George – reliability, durability and size combined with a sophisticated new design style and enhanced performance features,” said Mr Woodland.
The design for the new ovens has been undertaken by award winning designer, Andrew Crick and has undergone several phases of research and development.
“St George still has the largest capacity 60 cm oven in the market, with 92 litres of interior cooking space compared to the average 58 litres. We have retained this larger capacity as a key feature and we have introduced a four layer glass door with left, right or pull down opening doors. The extra layer of glass means that at whatever temperature the oven is set at, the outer door remains cool to touch. It’s an ideal choice for families with young children, looking for an additional safety feature,” said Crick.
The double oven now features nine complete cooking functions including closed door grilling and a full range of fan, heat and element options on both the top and bottom ovens. Ergonomic handles, telescopic racks, self-cleaning liners and an easy-wipe glass back door are additional features adding style and ease of cleaning. Customers can also choose from a huge range of designer colours in powder coat paint.
“Each oven continues to be handcrafted at our manufacturing plant in Chester Hill. It is this attention to detail and high quality craftsmanship that gives St George its reputation for durability and reliability and which continues to ensure superior cooking performance” said Crick.
The new range was launched to media and retailers in style at Sydney’s Powerhouse Museum where a range of classic St George ovens was displayed alongside the new range.
“As St George celebrates its sixtieth birthday this year, it was fitting to hold the launch for the new range at the Powerhouse Museum – the epicentre of design technology,” said Woodland.
“With the launch of the new range we at St George have also re-engineered our approach in going to the market. The modern Australian family has high expectations when they make a major purchase. We aim to fulfil their expectations with a quality appliance designed for the most demanding of kitchens,” said St George’s new marketing manager Philip Jones.
“I am very excited to be joining the St George team at such a pivotal stage in the development of the brand. St George is a now set to take centre stage and is guaranteed to continue to appeal to a larger audience who expect nothing but the highest quality and the best results,” he said.