Our Craftspeople
True Residential
From a father-son project in a St. Louis garage, True Residential® is now a leading global manufacturer of top-of-the-line refrigerators.
A craftsperson uses a hydraulic lift to move glass panels made in-house.
In 1945, Bob Trulaske, his dad and his brother built a refrigerator in their garage in St. Louis, Missouri. One of their first refrigerators, a roll-top bottle cooler, was used at a neighborhood bar where it caught the eye of a travelling 7UP® salesman. The 7UP company purchased an order of True Roll-Top Bottle Coolers in 1948, sparking the business to take off.
(left) Welding refrigerator components prior to assembly.(right) Installing a fan.
Today, True is an industry leader in refrigeration, known for their outstanding quality and energy efficiency in businesses and extreme outdoor climates. True’s commercial expertise translates seamlessly to their residential refrigerators, bringing a luxurious experience to homes. To build these refrigerators, True employs hundreds of craftspeople at their state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in O’Fallon, Missouri, where each is assembled by hand using many hand-welded and hand-finished parts. Room & Board is currently the only furniture retailer with integrated refrigeration by True.
A craftsperson inspects each piece for quality.
True’s dedication to sustainability is shown in many ways, from their use of low-VOC finishes, to the fact 75% of their raw materials come from U.S. suppliers, to their Box On Demand® machine, which makes a custom-sized box for every part shipment to reduce cardboard usage. In addition, True uses Ecomate® foam for refrigerator insulation, a highly temperature-efficient foam with zero ozone depletion potential and zero global warming potential. True is working to reduce their carbon footprint in all areas of their business, including their installation of solar power systems on their buildings.
