Victorinox was founded in 1884, when Karl Elsener I opened a knife cutler’s workshop in Ibach, Switzerland. The company history page says he delivered the first major supply of soldier’s knives to the Swiss Army in 1891. It also states that the Original Swiss Officer’s and Sports Knife was patented in 1897. In 1909, Elsener adopted the name Victoria in memory of his mother and registered the Cross and Shield emblem as a trademark. In 1921, the company says the combination of Victoria and Inox produced the name Victorinox.
The history page also records several later milestones. Victorinox says Carl Elsener II introduced automation in 1931 with what it describes as the world’s first all-electric hardening plant in Ibach. It states that the original Swiss Army Knife entered the permanent design collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1977, and that NASA ordered 50 Master Craftsman knives in 1978. The same history page places the watch business’s North American market entry under the Swiss Army brand in 1989.
On its watches pages, Victorinox presents collections such as I.N.O.X., Journey 1884, Maverick, Dive Pro, Swiss Army, Air Pro, Concept One, Alliance, and FieldForce. The Journey 1884 page lists water resistance, Swiss Made construction, and a changeable strap system. Victorinox also says it built its Watch Competence Center in Delémont, Switzerland, in 2016.
Victorinox says it operates in over 120 countries worldwide. Its stores page lists retail locations in Switzerland, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Austria. A separate factory store page identifies the Victorinox Factory Shop at Schmiedgasse 57, 6438 Ibach, at the company headquarters.
find.watches is not an authorized dealer for Victorinox.