Smeg Domestic Appliances

Smeg appliances are visually and technically impressive thanks to their bold designs.

Appliance Manufacturer & Brand Information

Smeg was founded by Vittorio Bertazzoni in 1948 as Smalterie Metallurgiche Emiliane Guastalla (metal enamelling factory in the village of Guastalla, Reggio Emilia). The company is still in the hands of the Bertazzoni family, currently under the direct control of Roberto Bertazzoni.

Its headquarters are a short distance from Guastalla in Northern Italy.

They are well known in the UK for their 1950's "retro" refrigerators that have curved corners and come in a variety of colours, for example blue, green and special editions as well as unique paintwork.

More recently they have expanded their product range to include integrated washing machines and washer dryers to their range of products. In addition they have scored a hit with sales on the "Opera" range of freestanding range cookers, such as the A1 which has almost become a style icon, much like the famed FAB28 fridge and its derivatives. These products, along with style led design in other areas, has led to Smeg being regarded as leading the industry in design terms and aesthetics.

Smeg have always been strong in cooking products with gas hobs, ceramic hobs, ovens and stylish cooker hoods with a designer flavor about them.

Smeg do buy in products from other companies, some of the components for the retro range of refrigeration is currently manufactured by Gorenje and they also sell products to third parties, such as dishwashers to MFI which are in turn sold under the Diplomat and Hygena brand names. However it has to be said that the quality level on some Smeg products are not up to the level that many people buying Smeg expect.

Smeg seems to focus much more on the design of the products in terms of how they look than how well built that they are.

Smeg products don't generally come cheap bar the low-end "contract" ranges which are generally only used for new build contracts, no doubt in an effort to grow the brand into this high volume area, however these products do not carry the same style as the more expensive appliances.

Products from Smeg can be found discounted on the internet and are quite pervasive on the net but are also available through a wide range of specialist kitchen retailers and the Euronics chain. Either of the latter will likely offer far better advice and be able to draw from the full range of products from Smeg.