| Type | privately held |
|---|---|
| Industry | Household Appliances |
| Founded | 1949 |
| Headquarters | Gallarate, Italy |
| Key people | Piero Puricelli, Maurizio Puricelli |
| Subsidiaries | Fulgor USA, LLC |
| Website | www.fulgor.it |
FULGOR (pronounced "Full-goar") is an Italian manufacturer of premium major appliances and ceramic glass grills. Fulgor's global headquarters are located in Gallarate, Italy; roughly 25 miles north of Milan in the heart of Italy's Lombardy Region. The company's products compete with those made by companies like Bosch, Dacor, Miele, Viking Range, Fagor, Thermador, and Wolf.
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Fulgor was founded by Mr. Piero Puricelli in 1949 shortly after he began working on a coal-powered cooker he hoped to develop. Piero chose the name Fulgor for his budding company because of its Latin meaning; "to shine".[1] The company began mass producing their first line of coal-powered cookers, or ranges as they're known in North America, in 1955. Beginning later, in 1974, Fulgor began production of built-in gas cooktops and electric wall ovens. In the early 1990s, the company became a global leader as one of the first manufacturers to introduce "gas on glass" cooktops and self-cleaning wall ovens. By 1994 Fulgor's products had caught the eye of many key global appliance brands, and the company began exporting its product to North America and other parts of Europe.[2]
Before pushing for greater exposure of their own branded line of appliances in the early 2000s, Fulgor was historically known a key global finished goods supplier to several of the major appliance brands in Europe and North America. In Europe, Fulgor has supplied finished product to the following manufacturing & retail brands: Whirlpool Europe, Auchan, BUT, Carrefour, Conforama, Corte Ingles, Electric Depot and Ocean, among others. In North America, Fulgor was the first European brand to export cooking appliances to North American manufacturing brands. To date, the company has worked with brands like Kitchen Aid, GE Monogram, Bosch, Viking Range and Fagor. Fulgor use to be marketed in North America under the FCI label.
As of 2009, Fulgor operated eight sales offices globally, according to their company website. The company sells its product across Europe, North America and Australia, with product selling in at least 15 separate nations. In Europe, the company tag line is "caring for you". The company's North American division was first opened in 2005, and later reorganized under the name Fulgor USA, LLC in 2008 with the slogan "arte culinaria", Italian for "culinary art". The North American division is headquartered in St. Joseph, MI. The product line in North America consists of built in ovens, gas and electric cooktops, microwaves, dishwashers and a unique electric grill called La Scappi. The company plans several product introductions for 2010.