Peerless-Premier Appliance Company
Corporate brand
UnclaimedPeerless-Premier Appliance Company is a Belleville, Illinois manufacturer of residential kitchen ranges and related cooking accessories.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Peerless-Premier Appliance Company is an American appliance manufacturer based in Belleville, Illinois. Its principal business is the manufacture of residential kitchen ranges, sold primarily under the Premier name, together with the Top Shelf microwave-oven accessory. The company operates in a region whose industrial history is strongly associated with metalworking, stove casting, enameling, and foundry production. The modern company was formed in January 1982 by combining the operating units of Peerless and Premier. Its corporate history, however, reaches back much further. Premier Stove Company was established in Belleville in 1912 by Maurice G. Klemme and Arthur C. Krebs. A related Klemme family enterprise, Cabirange Stove Manufacturing Company, was established in the city in 1915. Peerless Enamel Products was founded in 1928 as a contract enameling business rather than as a manufacturer of complete stoves. These businesses were part of a wider local stove-making economy that had begun with a Belleville stove foundry in 1873 and included numerous foundries by the early twentieth century. During the Second World War, Premier held a contract to produce bomb casings, illustrating the way regional stove manufacturers also contributed to wartime industrial production. In November 1975, Peerless acquired all of Premier's capital stock. Premier remained a wholly owned subsidiary until the operating units were consolidated into the current Peerless-Premier structure in 1982. The company subsequently expanded its inherited product and brand portfolio. In 1981, it purchased the Eagle product line, a Belleville stove and heater name with roots in an 1883 foundry established by Gottlieb D. Klemme and William Schott. In 1990, Peerless-Premier acquired the assets of Top Shelf, a maker of stands designed to support a microwave oven above a range. Peerless-Premier manufactures electric ranges in 20-, 24-, and 30-inch widths, as well as gas ranges in 20-, 24-, 30-, and 36-inch widths. Its gas assortment also includes a Pro-series range line covering widths from 20 to 36 inches. The products are distributed through retail channels that have included Best Buy, Home Depot, and AJ Madison. The company's manufacturing identity is closely connected to porcelain enameling and metal fabrication, capabilities that have also created operational risks, as demonstrated by a 1997 fire that damaged the Belleville plant's enameling furnace. The company has faced the same cost and competitive pressures affecting many American appliance manufacturers. In 2005, it eliminated 100 of its 250 Belleville jobs and moved the work to Clinton, Kentucky, citing lower wages and competition from Mexico. Despite the contraction of the once-large Belleville stove-manufacturing sector, Peerless-Premier remained one of the city's surviving descendants of that industrial tradition, alongside Empire Comfort Systems. Its brand position is that of a domestic, specialized range manufacturer serving residential kitchens through a mix of standard and professional-style gas and electric products rather than a broad, multinational appliance conglomerate.
History
Peerless-Premier's history is rooted in Belleville, Illinois, a city that developed a substantial stove-casting and metalworking industry during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The first stove foundry in Belleville was built in 1873. By 1915, the city reportedly had 15 large foundries, seven of them devoted exclusively to casting stoves. Corporate identities in this sector changed frequently as companies were founded, merged, closed, or transferred assets, making the precise lineage of later manufacturers complex. Two principal predecessors of Peerless-Premier were Premier Stove Company and Peerless Enamel Products Company. Premier Stove Company was founded in Belleville in 1912 by Maurice G. Klemme and Arthur C. Krebs. In 1915, Maurice Klemme's father and brother, Gottlieb and Alvin Klemme, established Cabirange Stove Manufacturing Company in the same city. Peerless Enamel Products was created in 1928 as a contract enameling operation. Unlike a conventional stove manufacturer, it did not initially operate a foundry or make complete finished stoves. Premier also participated in wartime industrial work. During World War II, it held a contract to manufacture bomb casings. This episode reflected the broader ability of metalworking and appliance plants to adapt their manufacturing capabilities to military supply requirements. The corporate combination that produced the modern company began in November 1975, when Peerless acquired all of Premier's capital stock. Premier operated as a wholly owned subsidiary until January 1982, when the companies' operating units were combined to form Peerless-Premier Appliance Company. The consolidation gave the resulting business a unified structure while preserving the accumulated manufacturing and brand heritage of the predecessor operations. Peerless-Premier continued to add related product assets. In 1981, it acquired the Eagle product line. The Eagle name had been used in Belleville since an 1883 foundry founded by Gottlieb D. Klemme and William Schott. At one point, Eagle reportedly produced more than 100,000 ranges and heaters annually. In 1990, Peerless-Premier acquired the assets of Top Shelf, a manufacturer of stands that allowed a microwave oven to be positioned above a range. Manufacturing continuity was challenged by a major plant fire in 1997. Damage to the Belleville enameling furnace caused the facility to close temporarily and led to furloughs for roughly 380 workers. The company arranged porcelainizing services with four different suppliers so that production could restart, with a planned output level of approximately 950 ranges per day. The company later received public support for workforce development. In 2004, it was reported that Peerless-Premier obtained a $44,000 Illinois state grant for employee training, associated with reported 2003 revenue of $55,555,555. In 2005, the company reduced its Belleville workforce by 100 positions from a total of 250 and moved the affected work to Clinton, Kentucky. The company cited more favorable wages and competitive pressure from Mexico. These developments illustrate the restructuring pressures faced by American appliance manufacturers as production economics became increasingly global. By 2013, Peerless-Premier was one of only two surviving descendants of Belleville's once-extensive stove-manufacturing industry, the other being Empire Comfort Systems, formerly known as Empire Stove. Peerless-Premier's documented product portfolio consists primarily of Premier-branded residential electric and gas ranges, including a Pro-series gas line, together with Top Shelf microwave accessory shelves. Its ranges have been marketed through retail outlets including Best Buy, Home Depot, and AJ Madison. The company also holds or has held intellectual-property rights connected with appliance components and acquired product lines, including a patent for a sealed burner mounting assembly and registered marks for Premier and Top Shelf.
- 2005
Belleville workforce reduction and relocation
[1]Peerless-Premier eliminated 100 Belleville jobs and moved the work to Clinton, Kentucky.
- 1997
Belleville enameling furnace fire
[1]A fire damaged the plant's enameling furnace, temporarily halting production and prompting alternative porcelainizing arrangements.
- 1990
Top Shelf assets acquired
[1]The company acquired assets of Top Shelf, a maker of microwave-over-range stacking stands.
- 1982
Peerless-Premier Appliance Company formed
[1]The operating units of Peerless and Premier were combined into the present company in January.
- 1981
Eagle product line acquired
[1]Peerless-Premier purchased the Eagle product line, a stove and heater name with earlier Belleville roots.
- 1975
Peerless acquired Premier
[1]Peerless acquired all capital stock of Premier Stove Company in November.
- 1928
Peerless Enamel Products founded
[1]Peerless Enamel Products began as a contract enameling company rather than a complete-stove producer.
- 1915
Cabirange Stove Manufacturing Company established
[1]Gottlieb and Alvin Klemme established Cabirange Stove Manufacturing Company in Belleville.
- 1912
Premier Stove Company founded
[1]Maurice G. Klemme and Arthur C. Krebs founded Premier Stove Company in Belleville, Illinois.
- 1873
First Belleville stove foundry established
[1]The first stove foundry was built in Belleville, establishing the industrial setting from which several later appliance manufacturers emerged.
Products and positioning
A specialized American range manufacturer with roots in Belleville's stove-foundry industry, offering residential gas and electric ranges in multiple widths and a professional-style gas range line.
Electric kitchen ranges
Premier electric ranges
Premier electric ranges are residential cooking appliances manufactured in 20-, 24-, and 30-inch widths. They form part of the company's core range business and are marketed through appliance retail channels in the United States. The available reference material does not specify individual models, features, capacities, or current production volumes.
Gas kitchen ranges
Premier gas ranges
Premier gas ranges are offered for residential kitchens in 20-, 24-, 30-, and 36-inch widths. The line represents the company's principal gas-cooking offering and is distributed through retail outlets that have included Best Buy, Home Depot, and AJ Madison. Specific model names and technical specifications are not established in the supplied sources.
Professional-style gas ranges
Premier Pro-series gas ranges
The Premier Pro-series is a professional-style gas range line spanning widths from 20 to 36 inches. It extends the company's range portfolio beyond conventional residential configurations while retaining the Premier brand identity. The supplied material does not provide detailed specifications, model numbers, launch timing, or performance claims.
Microwave stacking accessory
Top Shelf microwave accessory shelf
Top Shelf is a microwave accessory shelf designed to support a microwave oven above a range. Peerless-Premier acquired the related product assets in 1990. The product is a complementary kitchen accessory rather than a cooking appliance itself and broadens the company's offering around range installation and kitchen-space utilization.
Brand decisions
2005
Relocation of selected production work to KentuckyStrategyBackground
The company faced cost pressure associated with wage levels and competition from Mexico.
Action taken
Peerless-Premier laid off 100 of its 250 Belleville workers and moved the affected jobs to Clinton, Kentucky.
Aftermath
The decision reduced employment at the historic Belleville operation; the supplied sources do not establish the longer-term effect on total company production or employment.
Sources1 sources
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