Everything about Victorinox totally explained
Victorinox is a knife manufacturer headquartered in the town of
Ibach, in the Canton of
Schwyz,
Switzerland. Since its acquisition of its rival
Wenger in 2005, it has again become the sole supplier of knives to the
Swiss army.
History
The company was founded in 1884. Since 1891 the company has delivered
knives to the
Swiss army. Their famous
emblem — a cross in a shield — has been used by Victorinox since
1909. That year, the mother of founder Karl Elsener died and he changed the name of the company to "Victoria" in her honor. In 1921, with the introduction of "inox" (the
French term for
stainless steel is
acier inoxydable) into their products, the brand and name of the company became the present "Victorinox" ("Victoria"+"Inox").
On
26 April 2005 Victorinox acquired
Wenger, the other official supplier of the Swiss Army knife. For now, Victorinox has announced that it intends to keep both brands intact.
Products
The
Swiss Army knife is the product that has been the centerpiece of Victorinox's business. Originally the sole supplier, since
1908 it has shared the contract with Wenger. A compromise between the two companies gave Victorinox the right to advertise as the
Original Swiss Army Knife, while Wenger lays claim to the title of
Genuine Swiss Army Knife. Although both brands remain intact, Victorinox has since purchased and taken over Wenger.
Swiss Army knives are widely used outside the army. They are useful multifunctional instruments for everyday life and are available in a wide variety of sizes and functional combinations. Even
NASA astronauts have a Victorinox knife as standard equipment. Victorinox knives have also been taken to
Mt. Everest and the Arctic. The flagship model of Victorinox, the SwissChamp, is in the New York
Museum of Modern Art's Permanent Design Collection. There is also an active Swiss Army Knife modding community, producing new models from cannibalised parts.
One of the ways that Victorinox has tried to adapt to the decreased usage of pocket knives in recent years is the introduction of other forms of multi-purpose gadgets such as the SwissCard which is designed to fit wherever a thick credit card would go.
SwissTools are Victorinox's version of
Leatherman style multitools, ie a pair of pliers with other tools folded into the grips.
The Swiss Army brand has produced a number of pocket and wrist watches as well. They range from closable watches to classic bare clock watches. They can also be engraved.
Kitchen Cutlery
A wide assortment of functional tableware and
kitchen cutlery is sold by Victorinox without the Swiss Army brand. Additionally, Victorinox also markets kitchen cutlery under the
Forschner brand name. Forschner knives, though
stamped blade in construction rather than forged, tend to receive high marks in consumer comparisons, and have been consistently identified as particularly good values by the American magazine
Cook's Illustrated, performing comparably to competition such as
J. A. Henckels and
Wüsthof.
Recently, Victorinox has leveraged their brand image beyond the realm of blades into watches, writing tools, luggage (through
TRG Group), and even apparel. This extension has involved licensing the use of the Swiss Army shield logo rather than production by the company itself.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Victorinox'.
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