50 YEARS OF QUOOKER

1971

Unilever’s Head of Research, Rotterdamborn Henri Peteri, has a revolutionary idea. During a presentation about a sachet of instant soup, he starts thinking about how to deliver boiling water from the tap, to make ready-made

soup truly instant. Henri steps away from his impressive career to devote himself entirely to his new project. On September 8th, 1971, Henri files a patent on his invention.

Henri Peteri

Early to mid-70s:

Henri starts building a few prototypes for what would later become the boiling water tap and tank. In 1974, he creates a low, wide tap with a push-button mechanism

and built-in reservoir in his basement in Rotterdam. In the mid70s, Henri sells a few prototypes to friends and acquaintances.

1985:

After a period of stall, Henri’s son, Niels, joins his father in his venture. Not only is Niels an innovator, but he also loves design and understands how important it is for a product like the boiling water tap. Momentum

starts to pick up again.

Niels & Henri

1988:

Henri and Niels must decide on a name for their company. Niels comes up with ‘Quooker’, a word combining the English ‘quick’ and ‘cooker’ and reminiscent of the Dutch ‘koken’, meaning both ‘to cook’ and ‘to boil’.

1992:

Introducing the Quooker Basic. With adjustable height, the tap ensures minimal splashes when delivering boiling water. The straight, moveable spout becomes widely recognised as a Quooker design. Quooker sells thousands of these

FROM IDEA TO ICON: 50 YEARS OF QUOOKER

popular units right up to 2016.

Henri and Niels must decide on a name for their company. Niels comes up with ‘Quooker’, a word combining the English ‘quick’ and ‘cooker’ and reminiscent of the Dutch ‘koken’, meaning both ‘to cook’ and ‘to boil’.

1993:

Henri’s second son, Walter, leaves his law career to join his father and brother’s company. With Walter’s added support, the project begins to gain commercial momentum, and in the same year, sales double.

2003:

The PRO3-VAQ tank launches on the market, featuring revolutionary high-vacuum insulation. This development makes the tank extremely energy-efficient and compact. A vacuum casing with a thickness of only 1 cm ensures a

2005:

Quooker arrives in the UK, the land of tea drinking. Convincing the British to ditch the traditional kettle is not easy, however, following a tentative start, sales begin to double each year.

2006:

The Quooker COMBI launches on the market. The vacuum-insulated tank makes it possible to dispense both boiling and hot water from the tap. More compact and efficient than other boiling and warm water systems, the COMBI has

2008:

Quooker releases a new and improved version of the COMBI, the COMBI+. Now connected to the hot water main in the house, the COMBI+ can dispense unlimited hot water at a lower cost than via the hot water pipe from the central

FROM IDEA TO ICON: 50 YEARS OF QUOOKER

Walter & Niels

7-litre tank loses less than 10W of energy per day. On the other hand, hot water tanks of the same size insulated with PU foam require at least 4 centimetres of insulation; even then, the heat loss is over 20W per day.

Quooker starts making a profit by selling 4,500 taps – 500 more than the previous year. been in Henri’s mind since 1976 and perfected for thirty years. boiler. When delivering small amounts of hot water, on the other hand, the Quooker alone heats the water, eliminating the heat loss associated with bringing water in the central boiler up to temperature. →

Quooker arrives in the UK, the land of tea drinking. Convincing the British to ditch the traditional kettle is not easy.

Quooker - Fusion Square in Stainless Steel Quooker - Fusion Round in Gold

2010:

The Twintaps launch on the market. The system is composed of a boiling water tap and a mixer tap in a matching design. Until now, there has always been a difference in design between the boiling water tap and the mixer tap on the

2012:

Quooker launches yet another innovation: the Fusion is a single tap delivering hot, cold and boiling water. With the Fusion, dispensing boiling water requires the patented double push and twist mechanism, eliminating

2017:

The new Flex tap is released. Featuring a spout equipped with a pull-out hose, the Flex makes it easy to reach and rinse the sink or any awkward kitchen objects. Thanks to its in-built safety stop, the Flex can never dispense

2018:

Introducing the CUBE. An accessory that fits easily onto any existing Quooker tap, the CUBE makes it possible to dispense not only hot, cold and boiling water, but also chilled and sparkling water, all from the same tap. Quooker

2022:

Quooker launches the new and improved CUBE. Now lighter and more compact, the new CUBE boasts a touch-screen digital display panel alerting users when filters and cartridges need replacing. It also features

FROM IDEA TO ICON: 50 YEARS OF QUOOKER

worktop. The launch takes place at a time when the economic crisis has reduced the Dutch kitchen industry sales by around 50%. the risk of turning the boiling water tap on by accident. boiling water when the hose is extended. becomes ‘the tap that does it all’. In the same year, Quooker opens its first UK showroom in Manchester. an improved water flow for the chilled water mode and two different effervescence levels.

The CUBE makes it possible to dispense not only hot, cold and boiling water, but also chilled and sparkling water, all from the same tap.

Future:

Recently, Niels Peteri came across one of his father’s tap designs from 1976, with a wide tubular pipe as the tap and the Quooker mechanism on top of the spout. Launching soon, the Front tap will be a new flagship product.

www.quooker.co.uk