Kohler Co.

Kohler Co., is an American manufacturing company founded in 1873 by John Michael Kohler, based in Kohler, Wisconsin.[3] Kohler is best known for its plumbing products, but the company also manufactures furniture, cabinetry, tile, engines, and generators. Destination Kohler also owns various hospitality establishments in the United States and Scotland. In February 2017, Kohler Co. acquired UK-based Clarke Energy from the management team and ECI Partners,[4] a multinational specialist in the engineering, construction, installation, and maintenance of engine-based power plants and an authorized distributor of GE's reciprocating engines in 19 countries worldwide.[5] In November 2023, it was announced that Kohler is establishing the Energy group independently and would be bought in a complex partnership with private equity group Platinum Equity; the deal is slated to close in Q1 2024[6] and rebranded as Rehlko,

History

Kohler Co. was co-founded in 1873 by Austrian immigrant John Michael Kohler and Charles Silberzahn with the purchase of the Sheboygan Union Iron and Steel Foundry from Kohler's father-in-law, Jacob Vollrath, for $5000.[8] Early products included cast iron and steel farm implements, castings for furniture factories, and ornamental iron pieces including cemetery crosses and settees. A breakthrough came in 1883 when John Michael applied enamel to a cast-iron horse trough to create the company's first bathtub. The company has been primarily in the plumbing business ever since and is known for its plumbing fixtures and faucets.

In the early 20th century, Kohler made drinking fountains with a "bubbling valve", from which water shot vertically. Eventually, the entire fountain came to be known as a "bubbler" in the area in which Kohler products were sold.[9] The term bubbler is still used in a few areas of Wisconsin and some other areas of the United States.[10][11]

In 1934 and 1954, Kohler Strikes took place. A third strike took place in 1983 and lasted only a few weeks. On November 15, 2015, workers voted for the 2015 Kohler Strike, making it the fourth strike in the company's history.

In 1984 Kohler acquired Sterling Faucet Company. The company was renamed as Sterling Plumbing Group Inc. The Sterling brand was integrated into the Kohler family of products. Kohler later expanded the offering of Sterling products adding to the faucet line, shower doors, sinks, toilets, and other bathroom accessories.[12]

In 2007, Kohler created a joint venture in China called Kohler-YinXiang Ltd., based in Chongqing, China, to manufacture small gasoline engines. This joint venture filled a gap in Kohler's production capability and product portfolio, and allowed them to import small single cylinder engines; necessary to remain competitive in the global landscape. This additional manufacturing capacity in China did not replace or displace any existing Kohler engine production in the USA.[13][14] Kohler's UK subsidiary is the Cheltenham-based Kohler Mira Ltd, best known for manufacturing Mira Showers.

Corporate management history

Former Wisconsin Governor Walter J. Kohler Sr. was president of Kohler Co. and his son former Wisconsin Governor Walter J. Kohler Jr. served for many years in senior management. The presidency of Kohler was passed down from Herbert Kohler Jr. (born February 20, 1939, grandson of the founder), to his son, David Kohler, on June 1, 2015.

In 1998, Kohler made a plan to buy back any outstanding shares not owned by the family. All family members had to exchange their common shares for shares with limited rights that could not be sold. Since Kohler is not a publicly traded company, the number of shares floating was minimal. Kohler offered $55,400 per share, but some shareholders challenged this valuation and sued. The IRS also challenged this valuation by prosecuting the estate of Frederick Kohler, who had recently died holding 975 shares, but Kohler won the lawsuit.[15]

Products

Kohler's bath and kitchen fixtures are available in American hardware and home improvement stores and from Kohler Kitchen and Bath distributors. Kohler still makes traditional cast iron bathtubs, one of the few United States manufacturers to do so. Besides residential products, Kohler manufactures a commercial line of bathroom fixtures. The company also does artistic custom work, such as hand-painted sinks and toilets. In 2015 Kohler was named by Builder magazine as the "most used" and "best quality" in the "Bath Accessories" category as well as the top spot for "brand familiarity", "most used" and "quality rating" in the "Bath Fixtures" and "Whirlpool Baths" categories.[18]

The Kohler Walk-In Bath Division designs, engineers, and builds accessible bathtubs that are easier to enter than traditional bathtub models. The division specializes in bathing products for people with limited mobility or who are disabled. Founded in 2015, this specialty division sells its bathtubs through independent dealers across the United States.

Kohler also makes a wide range of small industrial engines. Traditionally, the company manufactured gasoline engines; however, after purchasing the Italian company Lombardini, it extended its range and now offers diesel engines up to 134 HP.[19] Kohler engines power a range of devices from water pumps to off-road vehicles. The Global Power group manufactures generators of varying sizes. Kohler was the first company to offer residential backup generators, starting in 1920.[20]

Since 2007, the company has been expanding in the areas of furniture, cabinetry, and tile in the consumer market, and engines and generators for industry. The Kohler Interiors division of the company comprises Robern, Sprig, Kallista, Ann Sacks Tile and Kast.[21]

Kohler displays many of its products at the Kohler Design Center in the village of Kohler.

At CES 2018 Kohler unveiled a new product line called Kohler Konnect, consisting of smart connected plumbing fixtures including bathtubs, mirrors, shower heads, toilets, and shower valves. These new digital fixtures have WiFi capabilities, enabling voice assistant control through Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa or Apple HomeKit, and app control support via the Kohler Konnect app.[22] The Kohler Konnect services are powered by the Microsoft Azure Cloud platform.[23] Competitors include the U by Moen shower controller and kitchen faucet, and the Delta VoiceIQ kitchen faucet.

class	skin-invert
type	Private
founded	December 6, 1873‡R1R‡
founder	John Michael Kohler
hq location	444 Highland Drive Kohler, Wisconsin, U.S.
area served	Worldwide
key people	David Kohler (President and CEO)
industry	Manufacturing, hospitality
products	Plumbing fixtures, tile, furniture and cabinetry, engines, generators
owner	Kohler family
num employees	40,000‡R2R‡
num employees year	2019
website	https://kohlercompany.com/

History

Corporate management history

International outreach

Products

Sponsorships

Destination Kohler

John Michael Kohler Arts Center

Residential review committee

Controversies

See also

Images

External links

References