SWIZA - swiss army knifeSwiza Swiss Army Knife: Innovation Meets Tradition

Many people think of Switzerland when they hear the word pocket knife. In addition to the pocket knife that many people remember from their childhood, a "new" Swiss pocket knife has been available from SWIZA for around two years. Messe.TV presenter Jürgen Groh is shown the knife by CEO Peter Hug. Do the innovations make sense or is it better to go for the tried-and-tested model? One thing is already certain: The all-black pocket knife from SWIZA is an absolute design highlight.

The "new" Swiss Army Knife

Jürgen Groh: Mr. Hug, we are here at the SWIZA company. There are Swiss pocket knives, of course. Are these the Swiss army knives I remember from my childhood? Peter Hug: No, our pocket knives are not the pocket knives from your childhood. These pocket knives were launched on the market in October 2015. There are two brands in Switzerland that make pocket knives, we are one of them. We have redesigned our pocket knife based on a lot of experience. This pocket knife is curved. My hand is curved so it fits perfectly in this hand. The pocket knife has a soft surface so the grip stays good even when your hands are wet. The pocket knife has a blade with a small opening, not just a small hick for a fingernail. I can open it left- or right-handed. Then the pocket knife has a locked blade, which is a safety blade so it doesn't fold. If I press on our logo I can close the blade.

Jürgen Groh: What else does the knife have inside? Peter Hug: We also have a corkscrew in this version. This corkscrew also has a special feature, it has one more turn, is slightly larger in circumference, so I don't have the risk of tearing the cork with this corkscrew, but I effectively open the wine bottle and that is important. Of course, we also have an awl, a so-called piercing awl, so that I can sew leather parts in an emergency. Or I use it as a small blade, because our awl is also sharpened. Then we have tools, can openers, screwdrivers, bottle openers. Jürgen Groh: All of this is in the knife? Peter Hug: Not in this knife, I would be happy to show you another knife. Our latest knife, the so-called SWIZA Allblack.

SWIZA pocket knife "ALLBLACK" all in black

Jürgen Groh: That looks great! Is that the same as in the background on the poster? Peter Hug: Exactly, that's the one. This knife has a PVD coating. This knife is completely black, which of course makes it look very classy. The PVD coating is a very hard coating that won't come off. You can see the silver edge from sharpening the blade, which gives it a very elegant look. In addition to the blade and the awl that we have already seen, we also have the bottle opener and a size 3 screwdriver in one tool. Again with the practical opening, which I use to protect my fingernails, especially the ladies. We also have a sharpened can opener and a size 1 screwdriver in one tool. And here we say tweezers in Switzerland, they are made of spring steel so they are really useful. I can use it to pull a thorn out of the skin, to remove an annoying hair. It's very practical and everything is black for this model. Jürgen Groh: I personally really like this design, to be honest. Peter Hug: We also have our brand new Summer Edition, which we will be launching on June 21. We have a special knife in spring, we have a special knife in winter... Jürgen Groh: Is that with the Lake Zurich model? Peter Hug: The Lake Biel model. Jürgen Groh: Has anything changed in terms of weight? Peter Hug: We are comparable in terms of weight. One important difference, however, is that these subdivisions - we call them plates - are made of stainless steel in our case, whereas they are made of aluminum in comparable pocket knives. The big advantage of using stainless steel is that you can actually throw our pocket knife in the washing machine when it is very dirty to get it clean. Then simply put a drop of oil on the moving parts and the whole thing is perfect again and will work for a long time.

Pocket knife with lifetime guarantee

Jürgen Groh: Lifetime guarantee? Peter Hug: Yes, we give a lifetime guarantee on the workmanship, on the material, on the assembly of all these parts. Except, of course, if I use it as a chisel and the blade breaks, but no, we give a lifetime guarantee. Jürgen Groh: Knives are a very old and classic topic, but I have seen that there are still many competitors at the trade fair, so how do individual manufacturers have to position themselves nowadays so that they can go into the future? In your opinion, what is the recipe for success? Peter Hug: For us, the Swiss Army Knife clearly stands for quality. We must not make any compromises. Other knives may be characterized by incredible creativity or an unbelievable number of functions. Our knife stands for quality. A Swiss Army Knife must always work and if I lose it in the fall, then it's covered in snow and I find it again a few months later in the spring, I have to be able to open it and it has to work. That is our standard. We check every knife to make sure it works before we pack it and I think that's important. So that is our claim and other brands have their claim. I think Swiss Army Knives equals quality and we've come a long way with that. Jürgen Groh: Mr. Hug, I would be delighted if I could find a knife like this in the mountains in the spring. Have a nice trade fair.

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