We Didn't Realize That Pyrex And CorningWare Are Owned By The Same Company

Some brands are iconic within their respective industries. Among many vintage dishware brands bringing retro charm to your kitchen, the two brands that immediately come to mind when thinking of kitchenware are Pyrex and CorningWare. These two brands have provided people with cookware, bakeware, and kitchenware for years and are considered valuable vintage thrift store finds, with Pyrex often featuring rare patterns people hunt for. Interestingly, both have been owned by the same companies ever since each brand was introduced: From Corning Glass Works that originally founded them to Centre Lane Partners that owns them today.

Pyrex was launched in 1915 as a food-safe, durable, and versatile option for baking, following the 1908 creation of glass that could handle extreme temperature variations. Meanwhile, CorningWare was founded in 1958, after a Corning scientist accidentally introduced glass and ceramic together to form Pyroceram . Both brands were introduced to the world by Corning Glass Works out of Corning, New York. Even with over 40 years between these two brands, they still found a way to work hand-in-hand with each other, creating collections featuring coordinating patterns. There were even some CorningWare casserole dishes that matched with Pyrex lids, adding to their company unity.

Until 1998, both brands, as well as Corelle (which launched in 1970), remained under the Corning umbrella, when the consumer side making the kitchenware sold to Borden, Inc. and later changed names to World Kitchen in 2000 and then Corelle Brands in 2018, merging into Instant Brands in 2019. While there are industrial and commercial Pyrex pieces still made by Corning, it ceased producing kitchenware products with the Borden takeover in 1998. In 2001, CorningWare's stovetop cookware was discontinued, at least for a short period of time.

Even after the transition to the World Kitchen company, Pyrex remained a popular brand in the kitchenware department. And while both Pyrex and CorningWare stayed together after being sold off by Corning Glass Works to World Kitchen, the latter's history has been a bit bumpier, with periods of time where it didn't produce or sell in the U.S., except via secondhand stores. Starting around 2001, production of CorningWare's Pyroceram stopped, and then in 2008, the brand brought the material back. Between 2022 and 2023, there was another temporary discontinuation of the Pyroceram line, before it was once again reintroduced. In the meantime, World Kitchen rebranded in 2018 and became what we know as Corelle Brands, which was purchased by Anchor Hocking's own parent company — a private equity firm known as Centre Lane Partners — in 2024.

Since its rebrand in 2018, Corelle Brands has been the name attached to both Pyrex and CorningWare, alongside other iconic names, such as Snapware and Corelle. The company's focus is on staying innovative, while also providing quality products that deliver on what people expect from the brands they have always known and loved. Even with both brands remaining in production, there are plenty of vintage Pyrex pieces to be on the lookout for at thrift shops and estate sales.