GE Appliances launches Spanish-language appliances. Here's what to know and where to get them

GE Appliances, a Haier company, has prided itself on a history of innovation, with much of it occurring at Louisville-based Appliance Park.

Now, GE Appliances is innovating again with its all-new Spanish-Language washer and dryer set targeted toward the company's Hispanic buyers with a control panel in Spanish and other features based on cultural preferences.

"This is the first, as we know it, Spanish washing machine in the U.S. that's purely in Spanish," said David Wilson, senior commercial director of clothes care at GE Appliances. "Hopefully it becomes the next big innovation product for us."

Wilson and Monica Martinez, a Senior Design Engineer in the laundry division, said the product was born from the company's Hispanic-focused employee resource group.

About three or four years ago, employees in the Latin Roots ERG started asking if it would be possible to create a washing machine and dryer that showcased Spanish-language features. It turned out, they weren't the only ones wondering.

GE Appliances found through its usage of co-creation — the idea of creating new products with consumers and team members rather than just for them — there was a desire for a product like this in the U.S., from Texas and Chicago to Louisville, Miami, and New York, Wilson said.

Here's what we know about the recently launched GE Appliances Spanish-Language washer and dryer set.

What are some features of the Spanish-Language washer and dryer?

Through in-home product testing with consumers in highly concentrated Hispanic areas across the U.S. such as McAllen, Texas, the GE Appliances team found Hispanic customers placing translated labels on the machines, Wilson said.

Martinez, who is originally from Puerto Rico and has been in Louisville for seven years, said though she is fluent in English, a product like this would help her because she finds herself predominately thinking in Spanish. Having a machine that "speaks" the same language would ease some of the mental power needed to do basic chores such as laundry.

To address the language barrier of an everyday task, the Spanish-Language washer and dryer features a control panel entirely in Spanish. Martinez, who worked on the translation for the product, said the goal was to use "universal Spanish," taking into account the various ways things can be said in different Spanish-speaking regions.

"If you're able to buy an appliance in your native language, why not do it?" Martinez said. "I think it's going to be a hit for people that prefer to speak or think in their native language because it's going to be more of a convenience and simplicity."

The in-home product testing also found many Hispanic consumers using large wash basins to create deep soaks for laundry, as well as additional scrubbing measures, Wilson added. The new product line features additional washing options.

"It's not just a translation," Wilson said. "We could have said 'take our English model and translate it,' but that's not authentic ... it's much more than that, it's how we develop cycles and how we make this model specific to the people using it."

The product features settings such as "Añadir Remojo," which adds 20 minutes of soaking to any cycle, and "Más Intenso," which combines soaking with additional agitation, to mimic what the company saw from its customers.

Other features include "Eco Frío," which reduces energy usage, and "Nivel de Agua," which allows users to manually add up to 26 gallons of water for deeper washing needs.

Where is the Spanish-Language washer and dryer available?

The washer and dryer, which have entered mass production at the Louisville-based manufacturing plant, are now available at major retailers such as Best Buy, Costco, Home Depot, and Lowes, independent retailers that sell GE Appliances, and online at geappliances.com.

The manufacturer's suggested retail price for the product is $799 for the washer and electric dryer and $899 for the gas dryer, falling similarly in line with other best-selling basic model washers and dryers made by GE Appliances.

Will the creation of this product mean more jobs for Louisville?

The success of this product could be good for Louisville too, potentially creating more jobs in the metro.

"If this product does very, very well as we're expecting it to, that does mean more jobs because it's more production ... we could potentially have another shift," Wilson said.

GE Appliances hopes a product aimed at an underserved consumer group will make a chore, such as a laundry, more equitable and accessible to consumers.

"GE Appliances has long delivered meaningful household solutions and our first Spanish-language washer furthers that goal,” Wilson said. “As technology is changing, so is the demographic makeup of America’s households, and this specially designed laundry solution represents our commitment to delivering products for all and taking into account what matters most to Hispanic customers.”

Contact business reporter Olivia Evans at oevans@courier-journal.com or on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter at @oliviamevans_.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: GE Appliances making Spanish-language washer, dryer. Where to buy them