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RENOVATIONS>>
A FOCAL POINT
FOR A RETRO
KITCHEN,
NORTHSTAR
APPLIANCES
WOULD MAKE
JUNE CLEAVER
GO MINT GREEN
WITH ENVY.
GOING
BACK
TO THE
FUTURE
THE CLASSIC 1950S
KITCHEN NEVER SEEMS
TO GO OUT OF STYLE
BY MIKE USINGER
| FALL 2008 | | GEORGIA STRAIGHT LIVING |
24
B
ecause classic looks never go out of style,
Elmira Stove Works knew it had a hit with its
Northstar retro appliances as soon as the
first refrigerator rolled off the assembly
line. But launching the collection—which today features
fridges, stoves, and range hoods in colours
inspired by the era that gave us ’57 Chevys, Leave
It to Beaver, and the birth of rock ’n’ roll—took a
leap of faith. Basically, the Ontario-based company
hoped that if you build it, they will come.
“We’ve always believed that there’s limited value
in doing market research on something like this, because
consumers have no idea they want it until they
actually see it,” says Tony Dowling, business development
manager for Elmira Stove Works. “If you went
out and said ‘Would you buy a retro refrigerator?’
most people would say ‘What for?’ The nature of our
product is that it was designed to look spectacular.
When people see it, it becomes a have-to-have.”
Offered in nine Elvis-period colours, including
buttercup yellow, robin’s-egg blue, mint green,
and flamingo pink, Northstar’s appliances are, as
advertised, indeed spectacular. Add space-age
chrome detailing and you’ve got something every
bit as covetable as a restored Chevy TriFive. Their
instant must-have appeal is somehow fitting, considering
they seem like artifacts from a time when
Americans were being convinced that they needed
to consume like they’d never consumed before. And