The JennAir brand of appliances was founded in 1947 in Indianapolis, Indiana by Louis Jenn, invented downdraft ventilation, grew as independent American luxury brand, then was acquired by Maytag in 1982 and later by Whirlpool Corporation in 2006 when Whirlpool bought Maytag, with brand continuing as luxury line under Whirlpool ownership. Initially, JennAir was independent company making innovative cooking appliances like first self-venting downdraft range in 1961 that eliminated need for overhead hood, becoming popular for island kitchens, with premium pricing. In 1982, Maytag Corporation acquired JennAir to expand its premium portfolio, manufacturing JennAir in its plants. In 2006, Whirlpool Corporation acquired Maytag for 1.7 billion dollars, gaining JennAir, Maytag, Amana, and other brands, consolidating manufacturing in Ohio, Tennessee, and Iowa plants. Under Whirlpool, JennAir was repositioned as luxury brand above KitchenAid, with new design collections Rise and Noir launched in 2018 featuring obsidian interiors, smart features, and professional-style ranges with 20,000 BTU burners, priced at 2,000 to 6,000 dollars, competing with Bosch and Thermador. The brand faced some quality issues in 2000s but improved under Whirlpool with better quality control. Today, JennAir continues as active luxury brand sold at Home Depot, Lowes, Best Buy, and specialty dealers in US and Canada, with Made in USA manufacturing and Whirlpool service network, so brand survived acquisitions and continues as Whirlpool luxury line.
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