Manufacturer · Poland · Rzeszów · est. 1937
Zelmer
Zelmer (est. 1937) – Rzeszów-based household appliance manufacturer, a PRL monopoly, known for Gamma and Alfa vacuum cleaners and small appliances.
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About the manufacturer
- Years active
- est. 1937
- Country
- Poland
- Location
- Rzeszów
The origins of the plant date back to 1937, when a branch of Fabryka Obrabiarek H. Cegielskiego was established in Rzeszów as part of the Central Industrial District. In 1939, alongside machine tools, it produced anti-aircraft and anti-tank guns. The factory, destroyed during the war, resumed operations in 1948.
The company was formally established in 1951 as Rzeszowska Fabryka Sprzętu Gospodarczego. It produced children's bicycles, floor polishers, hairdryers and vacuum cleaners, and, from 1958, low-power motors. The Gamma and Alfa vacuum cleaners were developed by the factory's design and technology office (Leonard Krawczyński, Józef Kalembkiewicz, Kazimierz Sadłowski and Władysław Wołoszyn). In 1967, the plant adopted the name Zelmer, expanded its range, began cooperating with the Swiss company Rotel and became a monopoly on the domestic market, exporting mainly to Comecon countries. In 1980, it employed 4060 people. From 1992, it operated as Zakłady Zmechanizowanego Sprzętu Gospodarstwa Domowego Zelmer.
In 2001, the company was commercialised as a State Treasury company; it then employed more than 2500 people. In 2013, it joined the BSH Hausgeräte group as BSH Sprzęt Gospodarstwa Domowego. Since 2017, Zelmer has existed solely as a trademark; since 2020, it has been owned by the Spanish company B&B Trends. The National Museum in Wrocław has Gamma vacuum cleaners (type A4) from 1957 and Alfa K2 (model A7) from 1966 in its collection.
