INWOOD, N.Y. — Keith McLoughlin, president and CEO of Electrolux, recently presented Neal Milch, CEO of Laundrylux, with a crystal award in celebration of the companies’ 60 years of partnership.
The award presentation was held at a special ceremony in Sweden, according to Laundrylux.
“I was honored to receive this award and have our partnership recognized in such a meaningful way,” says Milch. “We have a great deal of mutual respect and work closely together on many initiatives, such as marketing and product development.”
“Now with my son entering the business, the third generation at Laundrylux, we will be taking our partnership to even greater heights,” adds Milch.
“We have a unique relationship with the Milch family and Laundrylux, and it has only grown stronger over the years,” says McLoughlin. “We value our partnership and look forward to working together for many more years to come.”
The companies’ partnership dates back to the mid 1950s, when Bernard Milch, founder of Laundrylux, was hired to assess damage to the laundry equipment aboard the Swedish American Line’s M/S Stockholm, after the ship collided with the Andrea Doria.
The equipment on board was the Swedish-made Wascator front-load stainless steel washers. Milch was “extremely impressed” that the machines remained functional after the damage, according to Laundrylux.
With an engineering background and experience in laundry equipment sales and service, Milch purchased a Wascator for testing and technical investigation. His testing confirmed his initial confidence in the machines.
He then obtained the sales and marketing rights for Wascator machines in North America, according to Laundrylux. Inspired by the name “Automat,” which he frequented for lunch, Milch used the name “Wascomat” to market the equipment.
Electrolux, which later purchased the Wascator, credits Wascomat’s growth in North America to the marketing efforts of Bernard Milch and his team, according to Laundrylux.
Since then, the company says it has become a “valued partner” representing the Electrolux Professional and Wascomat commercial laundry brands in North America.
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