The increasing regulation of knives due to violence in the world has prompted the traditional Swiss company to do so, as company boss Carl Elsener said in an interview with the tabloid “Blick” published online on Monday. The blade leads to a “gun image” in some markets. For example, Elsener has in mind a multifunctional tool for cyclists. In England and some Asian countries, only those who need it for work or outdoor activities are allowed to carry a knife. Carrying pocket knives is severely restricted in cities. This is not the first time that the company has been confronted with the pocket knife blade being seen as a possible weapon.
Also read: General ban on knives in public – with some exceptions
After the terrorist attacks in the USA on September 11, 2001, sales of these products, also known in Switzerland as “sack knives”, fell by over 30 percent overnight, Elsener recalled. “9/11 painfully showed us that we cannot become dependent on a single business area,” he said. However, they have already shown themselves to be innovative. There are already “Swiss knives” from Victorinox from which a USB stick can be folded out. Now a product is to be developed for “cyclists”.
In Austria, Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) announced about a month ago that he would draft a legislative proposal for a general ban on weapons and especially knives in public spaces. There is now a corresponding draft for a “law banning the carrying of knives”. To date, the authorities can only issue gun ban zones in certain places, such as most recently at Reumannplatz in Vienna-Favoriten.
Price increase by 9 percent
The company, headquartered in the municipality of Ibach (Canton Schwyz), exports 80 percent of the pocket knives, kitchen and professional knives as well as watches manufactured in Switzerland, as the company boss stated. 20 percent would be sold in Switzerland. In order to compensate for the strong Swiss franc, the company will have to further automate and rationalize in the future.
According to Elsener, Victorinox increased the prices for pocket knives by nine percent. The lower competition compared to the other mainstay, professional knives, made the price increase possible. The Swiss manufacturer’s professional knives are 25 percent more expensive than those of the competition. In this area the company has to compete with manufacturers from Germany or the USA.
