WE Knife

WE Knife Company has been producing mid to high end production knives for the Asian, and predominantly Chinese market for over 15 years. Though the name may appear new, this Chinese based company has been in the business longer than many so-called established knife brands known in the United States today.

WE Knife manufactures knives at a very high level in part because the equipment that they use is not only of the highest quality, but the machinery is state-of the art and rather new. This, coupled with a research and development team that work with designers that are in-house, allow for quality and precision of production products.

History

Back in late 1999, and officially early 2000, WE Knife Co. opened its doors as a professional manufacturing facility. Initially creating a wide variety of tools and also some knives to start, they started to grow as a result of positive feedback and smart exporting tactics.  Over time, WE Knife Co. became a rather common name if you lived in or near China. In fact, We Knife Co. is one of the largest professional machining tool and knife manufactures in all of China. USA consumers started to see knives branded as WE Knife since approximately late 2014.

The mission of WE Knife Co. has never wavered since its inception back in 2000. Direct from their website, the mission states: “Building the highest quality knives and tools, and giving you plenty of choices in product variety“.

Notable models

WE Knife Co. has a very large list of knives that have been produced over the years, far too many to list here. Most were sold in either China or neighboring Pacific rim countries until recently. However, larger export practices and complimentary business models have allowed WE Knife to expand into the USA, bringing with them the following popular folding pocket knives commonly available at US online dealers and re-sellers:

• 601 Flipper line (offers several model variations)
• 602 Flipper line (offers several model variations)
• 606 Flipper line (offers several model variations)
• 608 Flipper line (offers several model variations)

As you can see from the above list, the knives offered are all flipper tab style knives. Based on the market trend, and other companies’ products, it is safe to assume that WE Knife is making every attempt to cater knife offerings to suit the desires of the community.

Contemporary Brand Competitors

It is hard to say where WE Knife Co. truly sits with regard to other production manufactures as they are still rather new to the US market place. It is easy to consider other Chinese popular knife manufacturers such as Rike Knife or Stedemon as reasonable competition. As general competition it is likely that they will need to compete directly with such brands, however as a company, they are likely closer to a Kershaw / Zero Tolerance with regard to size and market reach capabilities.

From a quality and design perspective, it is easy to compare WE Knife Co. to any of the following manufacturers when cross-shopping.

• Kershaw / Zero Tolerance
• Spyderco
• Reate
• Stedemon Knife
• Rike
• Benchmade

What’s Next for WE Knife Co.?

Still relatively new in the USA as a name, WE Knife Co. has started slowly and deliberately with the knives they offer. Expect to see an increase to the product line-up offerings as a wider Western adoption continues to take hold.  Additionally, expect to see other offerings from WE Knife Co. beyond just production folding knives.  Already they have started to sell titanium and tactical style pens. This is just the first of many likely products that may be offered.

Because WE Knife Co. is a strong and established manufacturing and production company already, it is entirely possible that they may begin to offer the market other tools in the near future allowing competition beyond just the knife world – such as Craftsman or Stanley as examples.  It is also very likely that whatever they produce and offer in the United States will continue to display manufacturing levels that are at the pinnacle of what can be accomplished with machined production processes today. Undoubtedly, WE Knife Co. will continue to gain recognition in the months and years to come.