Word: brandings
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...hasn't convinced Ben Collins, president of the Salins Group in Charlotte, N.C., which specializes in multimillion-dollar home renovations. After persistent problems with his Viking wall ovens, he is no longer a fan. "Viking has been called the Mercedes of kitchen appliances, and it's living on the brand name," says Collins...
That plan has paid off. In 2006 FORTUNE ranked Viking second in terms of brand strength and identification, behind iPod. As a privately held company, Viking is tight-lipped about hard numbers but claims double-digit growth for the past 15 years. Published reports put annual sales at more than $300 million, a figure the company does not dispute. It's a neat trick to create a global brand from Greenwood, Miss., where the company does all its manufacturing...
Influenced by Land Rover's off-road driving schools and Orvis' fly-fishing trips, Carl devised a strategy to keep the product line fresh by finding ways to make Viking an experience rather than just a product. Its brand is a lifestyle badge. Currently, there are 11 Viking Cooking Schools across the country that offer courses in baking, grilling, chopping and general entertaining. Courses average $100 for a three-hour class and are taught by staff and celebrity chefs. Three years ago, the company raised the heat, teaming up with the Culinary Institute of America to offer...
...Carl will allow his flagship to deteriorate in quality, since he spent years sweating the development details. A fourth-generation builder, the inspiration for Viking occurred when Carl was constructing his own home in Greenwood in the early 1980s. His wife Margaret wanted a gas range like the Chambers brand she had grown up with: a hulking cast-iron and porcelain beast weighing more than 500 lbs. (225 kg). Chambers was long gone, supplanted by flimsier ranges that offered utility sans style. So Carl decided to build his own, inspired by another contractor whose high-quality cooking utensils changed...
Although car manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz and Toyota have built plants in the American South, appliance makers are increasingly moving production to Mexico and elsewhere. But Carl is banking on the premium his brand can command to provide some cover. "We want an American-made product, and I am 110% committed to keeping Viking manufacturing in Greenwood," he says. "This town is special to me. We grew up here; our family is here. Staying here is a way for us to have fun, make money and help the community along...