Electrolux buying Anova?

[daveb]

Electro who?  I read it on the internet so it must be true.

 

https://www.cnet.com/news/electrolux-buys-sous-vide-machine-maker-anova-for-250-million/

 

One of the things I like a lot about Anova (in addition to the circulators) is their innovative marketing.  Liked the direct link from manufacturer to consumer for both retail and customer service.  Was ok with Amazon getting in the mix.  Did not like going to BBB and other discount stores.  Did not like the why-fi unit.  Hope they can stay innovative but ....

 

[blue_dolphin]

Yep, they posted a link to this yesterday.

[Porthos]

This appears to be a classic entrepreneurial  move. Let's hope that the acquisition doesn't negatively affect the future of the product.

[weedy]

doesn;t it always?

[Martin Fisher]

Electrolux? This sucks!!!

 

 

 

[Shalmanese]

Good for Anova but this acquisition doesn't make much sense to me. Unlike most culinary methods, there's no better and worse sous vide, all sous vide machines produce the exact identical quality outcome. There's some minor differentiation when it comes to size, noise, apps etc. but they turn out to be not super important in practice.

 

As Sous Vide becomes more popular, all of the existing players are going to get murdered by cheap, Chinese generics and there's no real room for profit in the market. The devices are incredibly simple and easy to manufacture and there's no defensive moat around any of the technology.

 

There's the possibility of Anova branching out from SV into other related devices but it's unclear where it could head to justify the acquisition amount. They can either choose to pursue devices that are even more niche than SV (combi ovens, vacuum sealers, chamber vacuums, centrifuges, rotovaps) in the hopes that they become increasingly mainstream or they can go after more popular devices (microwaves, dishwashers, toaster ovens, blenders etc.) which are incredibly competitive fields filled with tough incumbents. Neither seems like an incredibly compelling choice or one I would stake an acquisition on.

 

I'm glad the team has gotten this far and has been instrumental in pushing SV more into the mainstream but I don't see many bright prospects for their future.

[Tri2Cook]

3 hours ago, Shalmanese said:

 

I'm glad the team has gotten this far and has been instrumental in pushing SV more into the mainstream but I don't see many bright prospects for their future.
 

$250 million would be a pretty bright prospect for my future. They're accomplishing what I'd bet is the goal of 90% or more of all small independent inventors/manufacturers... to be bought out by a bigger company for serious money.

[Anna N]

35 minutes ago, Tri2Cook said:

$250 million would be a pretty bright prospect for my future. They're accomplishing what I'd bet is the goal of 90% or more of all small independent inventors/manufacturers... to be bought out by a bigger company for serious money.

 But they also have an oven in the oven as it were.

[chromedome]

I would venture to guess that the early-adopter, food-geek demographic has some value in itself. Businesses are keen to target "influencers," and Anova has a well-established presence within the -- for lack of better terms -- enthusiast, avant-garde portion of the food loving community. For a stodgy, established brand such as Electrolux that's probably a large part of the equation. 

 

Dunno about the rest of you, but when I think of Electrolux I still visualize the Dachshund-shaped canister vacuum cleaner my daughter used to ride on as a toddler. 

[gfweb]

This may herald Electrolux entering the US market in a big way. I wouldn't mind having their steam oven.

[rotuts]

I also was thinking of SteamOvens.

 

remember PedroG ?   we don't hear too much from him these days as he is probably obsessed w the ElectroLux oven.

 

Im pleased those at Anova might get a PayDay.

 

I can't see how much further a Circulator can go  

 

if E-Anova stumbles in the future viz the circulators  someone else will pick up the slack.

 

Electrolux wanted to buy some big USA-ish company , and that didn't work out as I recall.

 

perhaps this is their way to enter the USA-ish market

 

with a FullSized  steam oven ?

[adey73]

They already sell domestic "sous vide" ovens in the EU controlled by steam using a tap fillable reservoir.

 

Controllable to 1c.

 

 

Edited February 7, 2017 by adey73 (log)

[Anna N]

 Am I talking to the wind?

[rotuts]

that's of course the oven im hoping E-Lux is going to help develop further w BigSwedishKrona.

[fledflew]

I don't see the acquisition as Electrolux trying to enter the US market - they are already have a presence here with several brands that they either own or license (Eureka, Westinghouse, and Frigidaire probably being the most well known).  I think they purchased Anova because they produce a quality product with a lot market share and are forward looking with products like the oven that is to be released.  Not to mention that they have operated like an actual company since the early days.  Their kickstarter for the Bluetooth version a few years ago blew away funding expectations (1.8 mil funded for a 100k goal) and they were still able to release a quality product as promised and on time.  So many other crowd-funded products miss delivery dates, run into supply chain problems, or experience significant quality issues during first run production.  My experience with customer service at Anova has been top notch, which is more than I can say for a majority of companies that I deal with. 

 

As for Anova being able to operate somewhat autonomously under Electrolux, I certainly think that it's possible.  When amazon purchased Zappos, 6pm, woot, and countless other companies, they still let them operate as somewhat separate entities with their own mission and philosophies.  It all depends on how the corporate cultures are merged or preserved. 

[rotuts]

@fledflew  

 

I agree with you completely.  Anova always seemed to be a cut above

 

remember the early temp issues and how they handled those ?

 

I just hope Anova gets solid advice from a known combi oven maker 

 

so that the Anova oven charts a new quality path in that direction.

 

Breville when w a bigger BV-XL    

 

this one 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Breville-BOV845BSS-Convection-Toaster-Stainless/dp/B00XBOXVIA

 

it was even very briefly on sale at SurleT.

 

I saw it at W-S  on my way to the Apple store

 

nothing about it did I find interesting.

[gfweb]

51 minutes ago, rotuts said:

 

 

nothing about it did I find interesting.

 

It has a light!

[Anna N]

17 minutes ago, gfweb said:

 

It has a light!

 That was the one thing I noticed and wanted. Mine is still chugging along quite nicely and I can't see retiring it just for a lightbulb.

[paulraphael]

11 hours ago, Shalmanese said:

Good for Anova but this acquisition doesn't make much sense to me. Unlike most culinary methods, there's no better and worse sous vide, all sous vide machines produce the exact identical quality outcome. There's some minor differentiation when it comes to size, noise, apps etc. but they turn out to be not super important in practice.

 

As Sous Vide becomes more popular, all of the existing players are going to get murdered by cheap, Chinese generics and there's no real room for profit in the market. The devices are incredibly simple and easy to manufacture and there's no defensive moat around any of the technology.

 

There's the possibility of Anova branching out from SV into other related devices but it's unclear where it could head to justify the acquisition amount. They can either choose to pursue devices that are even more niche than SV (combi ovens, vacuum sealers, chamber vacuums, centrifuges, rotovaps) in the hopes that they become increasingly mainstream or they can go after more popular devices (microwaves, dishwashers, toaster ovens, blenders etc.) which are incredibly competitive fields filled with tough incumbents. Neither seems like an incredibly compelling choice or one I would stake an acquisition on.

 

I'm glad the team has gotten this far and has been instrumental in pushing SV more into the mainstream but I don't see many bright prospects for their future.

 

This is all true. I've chosen Anova in the past because of the relatively minor differences in industrial design, and because I like the company. Unfortunately my reasons are ones that often get steamrolled when a minow gets eaten a by mass-market whale. I'll hope for the best. Electrolux seems to make good stuff ... serious bread bakers all swoon over the rather odd Electrolux mixer, and I've noticed that electrolux makes the motors for both my KA mixer and vitamix. And I still have the electrolux vacuum cleaner I inherited from my grandmother 10 years ago.

 

Your point about the value of the technology is interesting. Makes me wonder if they have technology patents that we don't know about. Something related to combi ovens seems likely (as others have guessed) since this is their area of mutual interest, and also a wide open frontier.

[rotuts]

@Anna N  

 

I can easily see retiring it for not just a  light  

 

but for Steam  

 

just bang the BV around a bit , etc

 

""  How did that happen ? ""

 

easy peesy ( ? peasy )

[rotuts]

""  a wide open frontier ""

 

you bet'cha

 

but an old one with those who know :

 

restaurants of many shapes

 

industrial kitchens in major hotels

 

@PedroG  

[paulraphael]

" a wide open frontier " in that the good ones are still too expensive, complex, and energy-inefficient to have much chance in the home market. There was a thread about Rational ovens here a while ago in which about half the pro cooks loved them, and the other half admitted to never touching them because the training sessions had flown right over their heads, and the control panels are intimidating.

 

Which is another way of saying: my mom doesn't want one. Even if the price drops below $12,000.

 

I gather some companies (electrolux included?) are trying to break into the home market in Europe. I haven't heard about the products or how this is going.

[gfweb]

There are steam ovens from a bunch of manufacturers available in the US right now. They are small in size and many aren't plumbed. We thought about one but most of them weren't much bigger or better than the Cuisinart.

http://blog.yaleappliance.com/best-steam-ovens-reviews-ratings-prices

[Martin Fisher]

"This is a space we are developing in and learning in and this is a way for us to accelerate that learning in terms of smart, connected devices," Electrolux CEO Jonas Samuelson said. 

 

And it appears they're hedging their bets.....

 

"Paying $115 million cash for Anova, which sells an immersion cooker that is linked through a smartphone to thousands of recipes, Electrolux hopes to leverage its direct sales business model and boost its own connected products business."

 

"Electrolux said it will pay an additional up to $135 million depending on the future performance of Anova and will establish a smart home solutions center in San Francisco to boost the development of connected products in other categories."

 

Source: Electrolux buys Anova to tap into connected products growth

[paulraphael]

2 hours ago, gfweb said:

There are steam ovens from a bunch of manufacturers available in the US right now. They are small in size and many aren't plumbed. We thought about one but most of them weren't much bigger or better than the Cuisinart.

 

Seems like the manufacturers are dipping their little toes into the waters.