South Korea's rising star: Winix

Winix, a manufacturer and supplier of indoor air treatment and aquaculture products for home and office environments, pioneered numerous innovations in its brand adventure that started in South Korea in 1973. It provided its users with access to clean water and air at a time when it was very difficult to find clean water and air in South Korea. The PlasmaWave technology he developed opened a new page in the history of air cleaners. PlasmaWave technology, which removes the hydrogen in the air polluting bacteria and viruses from their structures at the molecular level thanks to ionizers, offered effective solutions to protect against respiratory infections as well as daily odors such as the smell of food or cigarette smoke.

Winix was founded in 1973 in Seoul, the capital of South Korea. After the Korean War, increasing industrial investments and factories in South Korea led to the pollution of clean drinking water sources and the decrease in the quality of breathing air. In the face of this situation, a group of engineers started to develop solutions to improve water and air quality in South Korea with Winix, which they founded. Winix products, especially water filtration systems and filters and air cleaners, succeeded to stand out against foreign products in the South Korean market since the second half of the 1970s. In air cleaners and humidifiers, the company succeeded in making a difference in home air cleaner and indoor air cleaner groups with the creative solutions it developed in air dust cleaner technology.

During this period, the prices of water filtration systems and air cleaners imported to South Korea from Europe and America were quite high. Thanks to the protectionist measures implemented in South Korea, Winix developed more economical solutions. In this way, brand awareness increased day by day and the product range expanded. After water filtration systems and air cleaners, water coolers, air washers, dehumidifiers, ceramic fan heaters, cooling systems and components started to take place in the product range as of the 1980s. In particular, air cleaning units offered both price advantages and ease of use in the household air cleaner group and room air cleaner types. Winix air cleaner sales have brought about an increase in quality in home and office indoor air cleaning since the second half of the 1980s.

Winix and PlasmaWave Technology

The company, which offers qualified solutions for access to clean water and air in homes and offices, has intensified its work on PlasmaWave technology since the 1990s. One of the main reasons for its success in the next period would be this technology. In PlasmaWave technology, the company started from the ability of plasma ionizers to emit ions in both positive and negative polarities. Unlike its counterparts, it utilized not only negative ions, but also both negative and positive ions. The bipolar plasma ions were breaking down the water vapor molecules in the air into strong free radical oxidizers. Negative ion generators do not form oxidizers under normal conditions. Whereas, plasma ionizers were very powerful components in destroying chemical compounds and odor molecules. Thanks to these ionizers, PlasmaWave technology, which converts molecules into ultra-fine (0.1 micron) particles, opened a brand new page in the history of air purification devices.

In 2000, Winix went public and its shares started to be sold in KOSDAQ. The 2000s were the years of opening to the world market. Entering the Asian market first, Winix successfully implemented a series of projects for the European and North American markets. The sales office established in Asia did not only sell water and air cleaning products, but also contributed significantly to the rise of South Korea in the Asian market. Reducing the costs of access to clean water and air, the company represented the technological superiority of South Korea-based companies in the Asian market. The sales offices it established in Europe and North America also showed that South Korea-based companies are an important player in the world market.

Winix Europe was established in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, in 2012 to regulate Winix's sales activities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.