Who owns which knife brands

Brand by brand: American Outdoor Brands and GSM own five each

American Outdoor Brands6 brands

Outdoor-gear company in Columbia, Missouri, listed on Nasdaq as AOUT. It was spun off from Smith & Wesson on August 24, 2020. Source: AOB release (Aug 2020) · AOB 10-K (June 2026) · AOB 10-Q (Sep 2026).

GSM Outdoors5 brands

Hunting, shooting, outdoor and fishing group based in Irving, Texas. Investment firm Platinum Equity bought it from Gridiron Capital; the purchase closed on October 1, 2024. Source: GSM brands page · Platinum Equity release (Oct 2024).

Kai Group3 brands

Japanese blade maker, founded in Seki City in 1908 and now based in Tokyo. Its US arm, Kai USA Ltd., sells the three brands below. Source: Kai USA history · Kai USA About page.

WE Knife Co.3 brands

Chinese knife maker founded in 2000 to make knives for other brands. It launched its own WE Knife line in 2016. Source: WE Knife About page.

Victorinox2 brands

Swiss company founded in 1884. Two foundations own it: the Victorinox Foundation holds 90% of the shares and the Carl and Elise Elsener-Gut Foundation holds 10%. Source: Victorinox history.

Cutco Corporation2 brands

Based in Olean, New York. It was called Alcas Corporation until 2009. Source: Cutco history · KA-BAR history.

Fiskars Group1 brand

Finnish consumer-goods group. Gerber sits in its Fiskars business area, next to Fiskars scissors and garden tools. Source: Fiskars half-year report (Jul 2026) · Fiskars annual report 2025.

Zippo1 brand

The lighter maker, a family-owned company in Bradford, Pennsylvania. Source: Zippo family of brands.

Olight I own several lights1 brand

The flashlight maker. Source: Olight site · OKNIFE site.

Blue Ridge Knives1 brand

Knife wholesaler in Marion, Virginia. Source: Blue Ridge Knives site · Servotronics release (Aug 2023).

No parent company: Spyderco, Benchmade, Buck and five more

These eight makers name no parent company on their own sites, and I found no report that any of them was sold. That is about who owns the brand, not who makes the knives.

Since 2020, GSM Outdoors bought five brands and was bought itself

1. Aug 24, 2020American Outdoor Brands is spun off from Smith & Wesson Brands as its own Nasdaq company, with 20 consumer brands. The same day, it signs the license to sell Smith & Wesson knives. Source: AOB release (Aug 2020) · AOB 8-K (Aug 2020).
2. Dec 2, 2020GSM Outdoors announces it has bought Cold Steel. Source: GSM release (Dec 2020).
3. Dec 2021GSM Outdoors announces it has bought SOG. Source: GSM release (Dec 2021) · GearJunkie (Dec 2021).
4. Aug 2023Servotronics sells the Ontario Knife Company business to Blue Ridge Knives. Source: Servotronics release (Aug 2023).
5. Nov 1, 2023Acme United sells Camillus and Cuda to GSM. Source: Acme United release (Nov 2023).
6. Oct 1, 2024Platinum Equity completes its purchase of GSM Outdoors from Gridiron Capital. Source: Platinum Equity release (Oct 2024).
7. Nov 4, 2025GSM Outdoors announces it has bought Smith’s, the sharpener maker. Source: GSM release (Nov 2025).

Where my knives sit: mostly with makers that have no parent

Seven of the brands I own knives from have no parent company: Kizer (10), Spyderco (7), Demko (2), Buck (2), Kansept (1), WESN (1) and Benchmade (1). The other four sit in families: CIVIVI (6) under WE Knife Co.; Kershaw (2) under Kai; OKNIFE (1) under Olight; and Victorinox (1), whose company also owns Wenger.

My one Kansept is the Mini Korvid and my one WESN is the Microblade, the knife WESN launched with in 2017. The knives I have checked left-handed are on my lefty page. My Olights, the Baton 4 and Oclip among them, are on my flashlights page.

Checked at the source: 43 of the 51 sources are the companies’ own

Each line links the page it came from, opened on September 24, 2026: a parent’s report or filing where one exists, otherwise the brand’s own site or the press release that announced the purchase. “Reported” marks a year that only a reference site gives.

Common questions

Who owns Kershaw and Zero Tolerance?

The Kai Group of Japan, through its US arm, Kai USA Ltd. Zero Tolerance is Kai USA’s own brand, launched in 2006. Kai does not publish the year it took over Kershaw, and outside sources disagree: 1977 or 1985. I own two: a Launch and a Squid.

Is CIVIVI owned by WE Knife?

Yes. WE Knife Co. started CIVIVI in 2018 and SENCUT in 2020, below its own WE Knife line. I own six CIVIVIs.

Who owns Gerber?

Fiskars Group of Finland, which lists Gerber in its July 2026 half-year report. SlashGear and Wikipedia give 1987 as the year Fiskars bought it; Fiskars itself does not state it.

Who makes Smith & Wesson knives?

American Outdoor Brands sells them, under an exclusive license from Smith & Wesson Brands. AOB says it mostly uses contract manufacturers, largely in Asia, to make its products. The license dates from the August 2020 spin-off, and the current five-year term runs from May 1, 2024. AOB owns Schrade, Old Timer, Uncle Henry and Imperial outright.