How the Smeg Fridge Has Become a Kitchen Staple

This household status symbol remains effortlessly cool.

Think of the Smeg fridge as the 1950s pin-up of household appliances: all curvy good looks, a triumph of form over function. Now a style icon, it has its origins in Northern Italy, where Vittorio Bertazzoni founded Smalterie Metallurgiche Emiliane Guastalla in 1948. The enamel and metalworks company moved into appliances in 1955 and made a global splash with its Fab line of refrigerators in 1997. It has remained relevant – and its products coveted – thanks to collaborations with other big-name brands, perhaps most notably Dolce & Gabbana.

Smeg teamed up with the Italian fashion house in 2016 to launch 100 limited-edition $52,000 fridges handpainted in Sicilian style and inspired by the island’s traditional donkey-drawn carts. Other editions include a Disney model emblazoned with Mickey Mouse, a stripy technicolour Paul Smith version and even the fabulously novel Smeg 500 bar fridge, which looks like the front end of a Fiat.

But it’s the standard model you may have admired in your coolest mate’s kitchen. It comes in 15 colours as well as adorned with the Union Jack or the United States or Italian flags and its distinctive Mid-Century look has universal appeal.

“Smeg has cornered the market in retro-looking fridges,” says Trish Khoury of Melbourne’s Grace Interior Designs. She believes the average Smeg fridge owner isn’t after state-of the-art video displays or ice dispensers. “We’re drawn to the Smeg fridge because we connect that retro aesthetic with simpler, better times.” This household status symbol remains effortlessly cool. Smeg refrigerator