A lesson from cutlery history: Getting knife buyers to buy

In hard economic times what is the most common approach used by retailers and knife company dealers to sell more knives? You guessed it- cut the prices.

Today, there is no doubt everyone involved in selling goods and services is feeling the pinch of consumers pulling back. The tightening of the purse strings started back around October of last year. Since then it seems everyone is running a sale.

Got an email notice from a knife manufacturer just yesterday about a “One-half off for one day only” sale.

One Case dealer in North Carolina ran a special on all Case knives for 20% off. The business owner commented after the sale, “We actually made a few sales that day.”

But this phenomenon of running a sale to move merchandise- and in our case, knives is nothing new. In fact, it was such a problem in the 1930’s a cutlery publication tried to rein in the knife industry through a series of editorials and articles.

One  such example-  June 1932 edition of Paine’s Cutlery Journal reported, “It is suicide, of course, to merely slash prices in order to get business, and the business man who thinks he can beat a cost plus profit basis better give up now.”

In many cases, the answer, according the PCJ was more and continued advertising. If one subscribes to this theory, then today the approach would be broader than simply advertising- running ads- it’s having a strong market presence and brand awareness to help achieve what is called in the marketing world as “top of mind consciousness” among the targeted group. And in a highly fragmented market, like we have today, one of the best approaches knife companies and dealers have is to go where the knife collectors and buyers spend a great deal of time- online.

Young people don’t need knives anymore

Hang around the knife industry for very long and you’ll no doubt hear a conversation about how boys today aren’t into pocket knives anymore. In fact, we here at CNJ have reported on more than one occasion that sentiment as well.

Yes, while it is true times have changed and we can quickly come up with a list of reasons, as we have, why this is the case. Young people don’t need knives they way they did last century, right?

Well, hold on to your horses there just a minute. This problem is not new to our society, nor our time. Listen to this statement as reported in the December 1930 edition of Paine’s Cutlery Journal.

“One of the leading publications in the advertising profession puts for the question ‘Why in the world don’t the cutlery manufacturers get together and bring back the pocket knife with a smashing advertising campaign to prove to the younger generation that a good knife has innumerable uses besides sharpening pencils?'”

So, there is hope because pocket knives became a rite of passage for most every boy up until the mid-1970’s.

On the other hand, there are lots of younger collectors out there- most of them just don’t carry the traditional pocket knife anymore, but they are definitely into knives just the same.

PS: Check out “Knife Collections” on YouTube to find over 6000 vids. Many of these collections are owned by the younger generation too.

Happy New Year!

Our New Year’s Wish

E HOPE the year will be more prosperous- and that we will continue to merit the kind of patronage you favored us with during the old year.

One again we thank you for the consideration you have shown us, we hereby resolve to continue in those policies of business which have met with your favor in the past. 

May the New Year’s dawn bring you the kind of cheer that stays right on throughout the year.

A New Year’s message as it appeared in the January 1932 edition of Paine’s Cutlery Journal.

And from all the staff of the Cutlery News Journal, we sincerely echo the sentiment so appropriately expressed to their readers then- to you for 2009!

Happy New Year!

Credit:  Letter “W” by Kathryn Finter Contemporary Manuscript Illumination http://illuminations.ca