Casablanca Fan Company
Casablanca Fan Company is a ceiling fan company currently based in Memphis, Tennessee. In the late 1970s, the company became known for their premium fans, which were marketed as furniture. History Casablanca was founded by Burton A. Burton in Pasadena, California in 1974. Burton's unique marketing techniques included inviting customers aboard refurbished 1940s railroad cars from the New York Central Railroad and Rock Island Line. By 1980, Casablanca was selling about US$42M in fans per year. To better cope with the seasonal swings of the ceiling fan business, Casablanca purchased Lavery & Co. in 1984, a Van Nuys, California-based manufacturer of consumer lighting fixtures founded by Arthur J. Lavery in the late 1940s. By the mid-1990s, Casablanca exclusively manufactured ceiling fans. Following a hiatus, Burton regained presidency of Casablanca in July 1985, and was named chief executive of the parent company, Casablanca Industries Inc. Reporting to Burton was Richard Y. Fisher, who was named president of Casablanca Industries. He served as chairman and president of Milwaukee-based Diana Corp. (formerly Farm House Foods), which previously acquired a 47% stake in Casablanca. In addition, S. John Gorman remained president of Lavery & Co. In 1993, Casablanca acquired rival ceiling fan manufacturer Homestead