The Waters-Genter Company

Harold Genter and Glen M. Waters founded The Waters-Genter Company in 1921 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was named after the two of them. The company produced electric toasters. Their most important being the first ever consumer pop-up electric toaster called the Toastmaster.

Charles Strite and Waters-Genter

Charles Strite

The first pop-up toaster was introduced by Charles Strite during the First World War. He used springs and a variable timer to create the world’s first pop-up toaster. He patented his invention in 1919 with the intention to produce the toaster for commercial clients. It was not available for homeowners at that time and was exclusively sold to restaurants.

The Waters-Genter Company in 1926 picked this idea and redesigned it to create the world’s first pop-up toaster for consumers.

The concept revolutionized the world.

It was able to automatically turn off the toaster once the job was done. It helped save time and made it easier to prepare a perfect toast. There was no need to keep an eye on the toast or to stand in front of a toaster as it did its job.

There was no risk of burnt toasts. The potential was huge for a product that saved time. It was also much safer.

The Waters-Genter Company growing

The Waters-Genter Company was formed to provide more capital to expand production facilities of Charles Strites four-slice toaster. The market for commercial toasters became saturated and profit margins began to decline despite production in 1921 being pretty low – one toaster a day.

During this time, seven employees agreed that home buyers can also use an automatic toaster. They started to work day and night on a design for home use.

The new working model was a success but production was very slow. Ten one-slice household toasters took months to produce. They did not find the idea practical due to the costs involved and decided against marketing and further production.

Big companies including Westinghouse and General Electric showed no interest in buying the company for the same reason.

Max McGraw saw potential in the idea and signed a deal to help the toaster reach more households at a faster rate and an affordable price.

Model 1-A-1

Murray Ireland, a superintendent at The Waters-Genter Company, designed the toaster’s first model called the Model 1-A-1. This toaster boasted a triple loop logo inspired by the masterpiece’s heating elements.

Toastmaster logo

By December 1926, it was available for purchase and became a massive success. National advertisements began in the summer of 1927.

The company hired women to market the product. They carried a toaster in one hand and a loaf of bread in another to sell the toaster and show a live demonstration.

Waters-Genter ran under the same administration for five years when it was acquired in 1926. Its Minneapolis, Minnesota, office continued to serve as the head office until 1929 when it integrated into McGraw Electric Company.

The McGraw Electric Company was a pioneer in the field and one of the largest electric appliance manufacturers in the US. Founded in 1900 by Max McGraw, it went on to become a major player through acquisitions and mergers.

Max McGraw: The Electrical Giant

McGraw was born in Clear Lake, Iowa, in 1883. Electricity interested him since childhood and he took electrical engineering in school.

From a young age, he had shown immense interest in performing electrical tests and finding solutions to electrical problems.

He started his electrical career at the age of 17 by entering the business world as an electrician. This is what gave birth to the McGraw Electric Company.

The company started with small jobs and soon began to earn contracts from major names like the Peavey Grand Opera House and the Stockyards.

The McGraw Electric Company continued to grow eventually buying an interest in The Waters-Genter Company. McGraw used his personal capital for the investment.

He provided funds to help the company enter the big consumer market in 1927 and finally acquired the firm. He kept ownership until 1929 and kept the same staff and eventually sold it to McGraw Electric in 1929.

McGraw Electric and Edison

In order to grow his company further, Max McGraw wrote a letter to Thomas Alva Edison’s son Charles Edison in 1956. He proposed to meet and discuss a potential merger of two of the biggest names in the business, Thomas A. Edison, Inc. and McGraw Electric Company.

Edison showed interest in the proposal. the two had a successful meeting at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs.

McGraw Electric merged with Thomas A. Edison, Inc. in 1957 to create McGraw-Edison.

On consummation, McGraw Electric Company turned into McGraw-Edison Company. It acquired manufacturing units and Edison Laboratories in different cities.

Emergence of Toastmaster as a brand

In 1978, McGraw-Edison Company became a major name through diversification earning more than $1 billion in sales. The Toastmaster continued to be one of its leading products.

Genter and Waters continued to look after the toastmaster division until its dissolution in 1938. McGraw decided to move toaster manufacturing to Elgin, Illinois where it operated as the Toastmaster Products Division.

The 1947 IB14 model turned out to be a major success. By 1961, it had sold over seven million units. Given the success of the brand, the company officially changed its name to Toastmaster in 1980. The company continued to introduce new and better toaster models over the years.

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