Spyderco: Name Recognition

[AH80s]

And by the late 90’s full page 3 colour.
1B3AF38A-366B-45F6-99CB-5655B16654FE.jpeg
37622D27-650D-4EEE-8366-08B7754473AF.jpeg

I remember seeing those ads in either Tactical Knives or Blade magazine (or possibly both). The top one came out around the time I got my first Spyderco.

Jim

I think Knives Illustrated was another I bought pretty regularly.

[Evil D]

I wonder how much of this has to do with your upbringing? My son for example definitely knows who Spyderco is but he may not know who Benchmade or several other brands are is because I don't buy or talk about those brands. Maybe a lot of it is just what you're raised to know.

[James Y]

And by the late 90’s full page 3 colour.
1B3AF38A-366B-45F6-99CB-5655B16654FE.jpeg
37622D27-650D-4EEE-8366-08B7754473AF.jpeg

I remember seeing those ads in either Tactical Knives or Blade magazine (or possibly both). The top one came out around the time I got my first Spyderco.

Jim

I think Knives Illustrated was another I bought pretty regularly.

Oh yes, I read that one, too!

Jim

[James Y]

I wonder how much of this has to do with your upbringing? My son for example definitely knows who Spyderco is but he may not know who Benchmade or several other brands are is because I don't buy or talk about those brands. Maybe a lot of it is just what you're raised to know.

I’ll bet that is true, at least concerning people who were brought up around family who are knife carriers.

I do think that nowadays, the percentage of the population who are familiar with knife brands overall is very small compared to, say, shoe brands. In decades past, when pocketknives were considered common tools among “most” men, and many didn’t consider themselves fully dressed without their pocketknife, name brands like Buck, Schrade (the real Schrade), Camillus (the real Camillus), Case, Ka-Bar (yes, Ka-Bar used to make very good traditional pocketknives; better than Schrade, IMO), etc., would have been familiar to a much higher percentage of the general population than are familiar with knife brands now.

Jim

[Chuck James]

Growing up for me...it was Old Timer, Schrade, Uncle Henry and Buck.

I heard about Spyderco probably 15 years ago but only started trying them about a year ago.

Now you've not only started buying them, you've joined a forum about them. Hold on to your wallet! Spydercos are addicting.

You could've warned me a little earlier!!!

There should be some kind of sticky at the top Saying "WARNING" SPYDERCO IS BAD FOR THE WALLET!!!!

[Doc Dan]

Growing up for me...it was Old Timer, Schrade, Uncle Henry and Buck.

I heard about Spyderco probably 15 years ago but only started trying them about a year ago.

Now you've not only started buying them, you've joined a forum about them. Hold on to your wallet! Spydercos are addicting.

You could've warned me a little earlier!!!

There should be some kind of sticky at the top Saying "WARNING" SPYDERCO IS BAD FOR THE WALLET!!!!

Yes, indeed! This needs to be a new thread. We can ask Spyderco to put that warning on every box.

[Michael Janich]

Hey, All:

One interesting dynamic related to Spyderco's recognition in the market has to do with the way knives were sourced for the military over the last 20 years. When I was on active duty a long time ago, we were basically issued everything we needed and purchased anything outside those needs on our own. As the military's spending/sourcing habits changed and they included more COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) goods, some savvy dealers and distributors began focusing on military business. If a unit was preparing to deploy and had a list of 50 COTS items, rather than sourcing everything themselves, they would lean on a dealer to do it for them. If an item on their list wasn't available, they would also lean on the dealer to recommend and source a suitable replacement.

Based on this approach to sourcing, some knife companies worked very hard to win the favor of key vendors to the military. That favor led to lots of "suitable replacements." Ultimately, there was an entire generation (or two) of military personnel who only knew Benchmade and Gerber because that's all they ever saw.

I have worked many military and law enforcement trade shows where young guys would come up, give the booth a hard look, and say "I'm a Benchmade guy. What's so special about Spyderco?" I would then proceed to give them a proper history lesson, explaining how Sal single-handedly defined the properties of the modern tactical folding knife. I would explain that all the features they took for granted on their knives were pioneered by Spyderco. I would then ask to see their knives, which often had CombinationEdge blades, and examine the edges, which were usually less than optimal. I'd ask if they'd like their knives sharpened--including the serrations. They'd usually agree and I'd give them a rundown on Spyderco's very first product, the Tri-Angle Sharpmaker.

When all was said and done, I'd shave a bit of hair off my arm, hand their knives back to them, and thank them for their service. I'd also let them know about Spyderco's OpFocus program, emphasizing that it allowed them a much deeper discount than their favorite brand and that discount continued after they left active duty. Finally, I'd remind them that, as service members, they should have a sense of, and respect for, history and tradition. They typically got the message.

When Kristi and I worked trade shows together during the height of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, we spent a lot of time winning hearts and minds--one at a time. We were swimming upstream, but it was well worth it...

Stay safe,

Mike

[skeeg11]

Thanks for taking care of our boys.

[Jim Malone]

Thx Michael!