Abingdon, Oxfordshire -- (SBWIRE) -- 05/27/2010 -- Created in 2007 to recognise and reward the very best businesses in the UK, the Which? Awards publicly acknowledge companies and manufacturers that consistently excel in their customer offering. And, with a tagline of ‘Who cares, wins’, this year’s awards focused more than ever on a great customer experience.

Fighting off strong competition from AEG-Electrolux and Bosch, Miele outshone its rivals at yesterday’s ceremony (19 May) at the British Museum with “outstanding quality and customer service across a wide range of products for the home” to take home the 2010 Which? Award for Best Domestic Appliance Brand. Nominated and voted for by the Which? panel of experts, winners are chosen following analysis of the investigations, surveys and test results carried out on the manufacturer’s products by the group across the year. Which?’s commitment to unbiased, independent product endorsement means that brands and companies cannot nominate themselves for awards.

The win comes after an incredible year for Miele, which included sweeping the board in the Which? Kitchen Appliances Product Reliability survey, obtaining excellent results in the Brand Aftercare Survey and receiving 36 Which? UK Best Buy awards - putting it in the Top 10 of Which? Best Buy brands in 2009. In March 2010, Miele’s latest vacuum cleaner – the brand new Miele Hybrid – became the latest of its appliances to be honoured with a Best Buy award.

Simon Grantham, chief executive at Miele, commented: “We are thoroughly delighted to have achieved the Best Domestic Appliance Brand honour for a third time since the awards were launched in 2007. It’s one of the most coveted and prestigious accolades that a company can receive and is testament to Miele’s commitment to appliance reliability and durability, providing products that are designed to work faultlessly, and assuring consumers the peace of mind that their appliance will always deliver outstanding performance and excellent results. We are very proud to have been awarded this recognition.”

Peter Vicary-Smith, Which? Chief Executive, adds: “This year a highly prized Which? Award goes to the top 11 businesses and individuals who have consistently put the consumer interest at the heart of their operations, showing that those who care, really do win.”

In order to enable customers to experience first-hand the expertise and service that has won them the award, Miele has opened its second UK interactive demonstration showroom in Cavendish Place, London. The showroom allows consumers to ‘try before you buy’ and trial Miele appliances for themselves, and complements the Miele Experience Centre in Abingdon, Oxfordshire.

Notes to Editors

Contacts
For further information please contact Anna Roll or Kate Ward at 3 Monkeys Communications:
miele@3-monkeys.co.uk or 020 7009 3100

About Miele
Miele, the German manufacturer and global leader in premium domestic appliances and commercial equipment, is committed to reliability and durability, combined with advanced technology and superior quality. Founded in 1899, Miele has always been a family-owned, family-run company, belonging to the Miele and Zinkann families – today each in their fourth generation. The company motto of ‘Forever Better’ underpins every Miele endeavour; it drives innovation through the passion for finding better ways of doing things, and a desire to enrich people’s lives and bring pleasure to every household. The product range includes household appliances for laundry, cooking, refrigeration, dishwashing and vacuums, and commercial appliances for laundry, sterilisation and dishwashing. Miele encourages its UK customers to come and test the products before they make a purchase at the Experience Centre in Abingdon, Oxfordshire or the brand new Miele Gallery, in Central London.

Miele is the proud supplier of appliances for a wide range of quality hospitals, hotels, restaurants and sport facilities, as well as prestigious residences across the UK and worldwide including The All England Lawn Tennis Club at Wimbledon, Italy’s Grand Hotel A Villa Feltrinelli, Vienna’s Hofburg Imperial Palace and The Kremlin.

In May 2010, Miele was awarded the Best Domestic Appliance Brand accolade at the Which? Awards for a record third time. In addition, Miele swept the board in the Which? Kitchen Appliances Product Reliability Survey and obtained excellent results in the Brand Aftercare Survey.

In 2009, Miele received 36 Which? UK Best Buy awards, putting it in the Top 10 of Which? Best Buy brands. In March 2010 the new Miele Hybrid dual power vacuum cleaner was the latest Miele appliance to be honoured with a Best Buy award, and the S7 upright vacuum cleaner was also awarded a Get Connected Product of The Year 2010 accolade.

For further information please visit http://www.miele.co.uk/