Gerber Legendary Blades

Gerber Legendary Blades, Inc.
Corporation
Industry Manufacturing
Founded Portland, Oregon
1939 (1939)
Headquarters Tigard, Oregon
Key people
 Pete Gerber, Founder
Products Knives
Revenue US$100 million
Number of employees
 300
Parent Fiskars
Website www.gerbergear.com
Gerber LHR Combat Knife designed by Matt Larsen, Bill Harsey and Chris Reeve
These are two of the most popular Gerber knives. The smaller is the Gerber LMF II and the larger is the Gerber LHR Sheath knife

Gerber Legendary Blades is a maker of consumer knives and multitools headquartered in Tigard, Oregon, United States, within the Portland metropolitan area. Currently, Gerber is a sub division of Fiskars Brands Inc, owned by the Fiskars company of Finland. Gerber was established in 1939 by Pete Gerber. Gerber was the first production knife company to collaborate with a custom knife maker when it collaborated with David Murphy.[1]

History

In 1910, the Gerber family started an advertising firm in Portland, Oregon.[2] While working for the family business, Joseph Gerber mailed 24 sets of kitchen knives to clients during the holidays.[2] These handmade knives were very popular, with then catalog retailer Abercrombie & Fitch requesting more of these knives from Gerber to sell in their catalog in 1939.[2] Gerber started Gerber Legendary Blades that same year.[2]

In 1966, the company relocated to a new headquarters next to Interstate 5 in what is now Tigard.[2] Finnish company Fiskars purchased the private company in 1987.[2] Chad Vincent was hired as chief executive officer in July 2001.[2] By 2003, the company employed three hundred people, and had revenues near $100 million and was the second leading seller of multitools in the United States,[2] after Leatherman, another company based in the Portland area.

Designs

Designers who have since designed knives for Gerber include: Bob Loveless, Paul Poehlmann, Blackie Collins, William Harsey Jr., Fred Carter, Rick Hinderer, Brad Parrish, Ernest Emerson and Matt Larsen.[1] Former Gerber employees who have started their own successful knife companies include Al Mar and Pete Kershaw.[1]

Gerber built a line of folding knives based on designs of Rex Applegate.[1] Bear Grylls has also helped design and promote a line of survival knives and tools.

Models

Models of Gerber knives include:

  • the Gerber Guardian: A boot knife designed by knife maker Bob Loveless more than twenty years ago.[1]
  • the Gerber Mark II:A fighting knife.[1]
  • the Gerber LMF II Infantry
  • the Gerber 31-001901 Bear Grylls Ultimate Pro
  • the Gerber 22-41121 Prodigy Survival Knife
  • the Gerber Blackie Collins Clip-lock Diving Knife
  • the Gerber Strongarm
  • the LMF II ASEK, or Aircrew Survival and Egress Knife
  • the Gerber Gator: A single blade lockback knife with an ergonomic thermoplastic handle molded to resemble alligator skin.
  • The Gerber/Emerson Alliance: The first automatic knife made by either company is based on the profile of Emerson Knives, Inc.'s earlier Raven knife design and is an issued item to certain military units under the NSN (NATO Stock Numbers): 5110-01-516-3243 and 5110-01-516-3244.[3]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pacella, Gerard (2002). 100 Legendary Knives. Krause Publications. p. 126. ISBN 0-87349-417-2.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Williams, Christina Dyrness. "Inside Oregon Business: Gerber sharpens edge on growth, marketing". The Oregonian, October 9, 2003, Business, p. D1.
  3. ↑ Karwan, Chuck (2003), "Automatic Success", Tactical Knives, 9 (6): 50–54
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