The Road to 65

As we celebrate ARI’s 65th Anniversary, we are proud of how we’ve grown. Over the past six-and-a-half decades, we have:

Played a central role in introducing new equipment, technologies and services to the commercial and industrial refrigeration markets

Engineered customized solutions to support clients in the foodservice, healthcare, commercial, agriculture, hospitality, manufacturing and distribution industries

Transformed our company into a destination employer, where young recruits and seasoned experts alike have easy access to development opportunities to advance their careers and improve their lives

… all while navigating ever-shifting market dynamics that have tested our agility and resilience at every turn.

Lee Livingston took a $50-a-week sales manager job at Arnold Refrigeration Inc. in 1966, four years after it had been established by Joe and Ginger Arnold. Ten years later, shortly after the sale of Arnold Refrigeration to Ron Malek, Ron recognized that Lee was essential to the business and sold him half the shares.

This dauntless duo took on the market with boundless energy and determination. Lee expanded the business on the supermarket side, where he had deep expertise, while Ron, a sales engineer who never met a refrigeration or thermal challenge he couldn’t solve, broached the foodservice and warehouse segments. Guy Kitchen joined the team, bringing construction expertise gained through his own business, to lead ARI into thermal design and installation services, which enabled the company to become the turnkey solutions provider it continues to be today.

Today, co-owners Sheri Livingston Kitchen and Dean Lindstrom are taking the company into its next generation of innovation, building on its strong foundation and history. The focus is on turnkey refrigeration and thermal solutions, backed by state-of-the-art technology including smart systems and predictive analysis tools poised to transform the industry yet again. Culture and employee development are getting center-stage treatment, too, as ARI works toward its goal of being the preferred world-class provider across commercial refrigeration markets.