Is Benchmade as a company not profitable?

[Lapedog]

And you did it again. Much like this thread, you aren't making any sense.

Will the distributors be buying benchmades if the end customer is not?

I'm not sure what knowledge is to be gained from this silly "discussion".

That’s not a contradiction at all. The main customers who are buying from benchmade are the distributors. Obviously if people aren’t buying BenchMades then the distributors won’t keep ordering them.

That doesn’t change that the distributors are the main purchasers though. There are companies (not necessarily knife companies) who focus most their attention on distributors and then let the distributors handle any customer complaints.

For example there is a company I know of that produces windows and sells to distributors. Then the distributors to the installers who eventually sell and install for the customers. The problem is that when a customer calls the guy who installed the window to complain when there is an issue they are told they have to contact the manufacturer, who tells them the distributor needs to be contacted to deal with their complaint at the local level. Then upon calling the distributor the customer is told that the installer made the error and he must be contacted.

All I was saying is that it is wise of Benchmade to be aware that their final customer’s experience will drive people’s image of the brand. At the same time the distributor network is certainly their largest customers.

Also this thread isn’t meant to speculate that Benchmade was nearing demise. Companies grow and shrink all the time and become more profitable and less profitable at different times in their lives. I just was noting that the moves Benchmade was making appeared to me to be moves a company makes in order to streamline and improve profitability.

 

[Lapedog]

Maybe you could give some actual references on the QC thing. My Benchmade knives have been pretty much flawless.

Added: I shoot 22LR and Remington Golden Bullets had real QC problems relative to misfires or simply duds. The percentages varied a lot, but some had misfires up to about 8-10% of the total. I never saw this (EVER) and I shoot them. But I certainly had more duds 10 years ago relative to 40 years ago with their ammunition. Case Cutlery has QC issues as far as I'm concerned, but Case doesn't see it that way. If it looks good, functions and is safe, it gets shipped. With Benchmade knives, I would be shocked to learn that QC issues approach even 0.5-1% of total production. They deal with it, but not in the way Case has dealt with it.... I edited my % down.

Also if the majority of their customers are not knife afficianados then things a BF member might consider a QC flaw might not even register to the “regular guy” customer.

There’s no way of knowing what the breakdown of their end customer is though in terms of anal knife nut vs Joe Shmoe.

 

[craytab]

That’s not a contradiction at all. The main customers who are buying from benchmade are the distributors. Obviously if people aren’t buying BenchMades then the distributors won’t keep ordering them.

That doesn’t change that the distributors are the main purchasers though. There are companies (not necessarily knife companies) who focus most their attention on distributors and then let the distributors handle any customer complaints.

For example there is a company I know of that produces windows and sells to distributors. Then the distributors to the installers who eventually sell and install for the customers. The problem is that when a customer calls the guy who installed the window to complain when there is an issue they are told they have to contact the manufacturer, who tells them the distributor needs to be contacted to deal with their complaint at the local level. Then upon calling the distributor the customer is told that the installer made the error and he must be contacted.

All I was saying is that it is wise of Benchmade to be aware that their final customer’s experience will drive people’s image of the brand. At the same time the distributor network is certainly their largest customers.

Also this thread isn’t meant to speculate that Benchmade was nearing demise. Companies grow and shrink all the time and become more profitable and less profitable at different times in their lives. I just was noting that the moves Benchmade was making appeared to me to be moves a company makes in order to streamline and improve profitability.

Contradiction again. Sorry you can't see it.

Too much bs speculation and nonsense going on in this thread for me. I'm out.

 

[boss_crew]

Too much bs speculation and nonsense going on in this thread for me. I'm out.

Agree. The whole premise this thread is pure speculation and conjecture! They make 17B per month. PER MONTH!!!

 

[Planterz]

Maybe I missed it, but has anyone mentioned that Benchmade has, or at least had, the United States military as a customer? That's a lot of knives and steady revenue.

 

[miltmaldo]

Maybe you could give some actual references on the QC thing. My Benchmade knives have been pretty much flawless.

Added: I shoot 22LR and Remington Golden Bullets had real QC problems relative to misfires or simply duds. The percentages varied a lot, but some had misfires up to about 8-10% of the total. I never saw this (EVER) and I shoot them. But I certainly had more duds 10 years ago relative to 40 years ago with their ammunition. Case Cutlery has QC issues as far as I'm concerned, but Case doesn't see it that way. If it looks good, functions and is safe, it gets shipped. With Benchmade knives, I would be shocked to learn that QC issues approach even 0.5-1% of total production. They deal with it, but not in the way Case has dealt with it.... I edited my % down.

I like Benchmade so please don't take this as a hate on Bemchmade most of my Benchmade are in good to perfect but when you see this . How can anyone defend this .
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/benchmade-crooked-river-blade-question.1601139/#post-18288495

 

[22-rimfire]

Looks like that one slipped through the inspection process. I would assume that the factory will fix it or replace the knife. I won't defend it at all. Factories are factories. There are a lot of different folks involved that have human frailties that will change from day to day.

 

[miltmaldo]

^^ yes I agree with human being human and making mistake that's why Kershaw And Spyderco have an annual second sale . They don't try and sale everything that comes out of the products line .

Benchmade has to go back and fix the knife and by the time it gets back to the customer it will cost the about $75 . Just do more CQ and and have an annual sell . Sell them at the price you sell them to the distributors No BoxAnd No Bag done deal .

 

[Darkera]

Maybe you could give some actual references on the QC thing. My Benchmade knives have been pretty much flawless.

Added: I shoot 22LR and Remington Golden Bullets had real QC problems relative to misfires or simply duds. The percentages varied a lot, but some had misfires up to about 8-10% of the total. I never saw this (EVER) and I shoot them. But I certainly had more duds 10 years ago relative to 40 years ago with their ammunition. Case Cutlery has QC issues as far as I'm concerned, but Case doesn't see it that way. If it looks good, functions and is safe, it gets shipped. With Benchmade knives, I would be shocked to learn that QC issues approach even 0.5-1% of total production. They deal with it, but not in the way Case has dealt with it.... I edited my % down.

I've read about Benchmark's supposed chronic QC problem a lot on the Benchmade forum and have seen reviews stating as much on YouTube (the Nick Shabazz one comes to mind). I have two Benchmark knives, a Foray and Crooked River, and love them. After reading all these QC horror stories I started counting myself lucky. The Foray grind is asymmetrical but oddly enough I never really noticed that before when using or sharpening it, someone pointed this issue out on the Benchmade forum and sure enough I saw it. I use all my knives and am not hyper-OCD about quality issues, sometimes I think expectations for production knives are way too high for some people, but the fact is a $200+ knife should have a symmetrical grind.

Unfortunately, real or not, all of these QC stories have affected me as a consumer. I was going to order a Benchmade Proper online because the micarta model was out of stock at my local store, but I haven't because I don't want to order it without seeing it in person and checking for flaws. Besides the Foray grind, my Benchmade knives are great and I have no reason to think their QC is inconsistent, but rumors can have that affect on people... if there is a QC issue at the factory they really should aggressively confront it ASAP and make it known that they've identified and solved potential issues.

 

[sabre cat]

Of course, individuals are ultimately Benchmade's customers and BM knows this quite well. Why else would they have what's considered some of the best customer service in the knife industry?

Jobbers, wholesalers, and retailers are only a means to distribute a product to the end user. Any manufacturer that considers them the final customer is making a huge mistake.

 

[JD Bear]

It seems to me Benchmade has a nice spot in the market that they're happy with. I like s30v and I don't really need anything more. I also like the axis lock...except when the springs get weak and have to be replaced. I think the mid level price range can get over looked pretty quickly these days. Like if I only spend $100 on a knife it's cheap junk with bad materials. Maybe I'm different, but if I could get three Benchmades with 154cm or s30v for $300 or one ZT with 20cv...I know which way I'm gonna go. I'm sure I'm in the minority with that, but oh well. The only knife I carry everyday is a Buck 110 variant, usually with s30v, so my opinion probably doesn't mean anything.

 

[sabre cat]

It seems to me Benchmade has a nice spot in the market that they're happy with. I like s30v and I don't really need anything more. I also like the axis lock...except when the springs get weak and have to be replaced. I think the mid level price range can get over looked pretty quickly these days. Like if I only spend $100 on a knife it's cheap junk with bad materials. Maybe I'm different, but if I could get three Benchmades with 154cm or s30v for $300 or one ZT with 20cv...I know which way I'm gonna go. I'm sure I'm in the minority with that, but oh well. The only knife I carry everyday is a Buck 110 variant, usually with s30v, so my opinion probably doesn't mean anything.

Your opinion means quite a bit, my friend. It offers a perspective that most of us ignore...that most of us are purchasing more knife than we really need.

 

[bikerector]

Compared to Spyderco most companies are light on innovation. How many lock types does Spyderco have? Like 12?

The only company that may top it for trying out crazy new ideas is CRKT but the quality gulf between the two is huge.

True, I think spyderco has the most innovation in folders. I just wish less had the spydie hole as it can ruin the aesthetics for me. I think most of spydercos fixed blades are grossly over-priced though. I feel like they come in at the prices near what you can get a custom from a forum maker often times. But, I haven't owned one so maybe they are nearly up to the quality too. I usually get turned off by the price tag so never get one as I would prefer something more unique from a forum guy. But their folders are good.

I think benchmade's innovation is more based around have options of the same model thought that mostly applies to the griptillian and maybe a few others. And I'm not talking about sprints but having them regularly available. To me, that's kind of akin to GEC putting different blade numbers and profiles into a similar knife frame so if you like the overall design you can get that but with a different tool configuration.

Edit: I also think something benchmade does well is their lifesharp broken including being able to pay to have the blades replaced. For people who simply use their knife this is essentially buying a knife for life and then some. Unless you lose it.

 

[BMCGear]

Benchmade makes a really good knife. I won't say that there aren't fit & finish issues here and there that could be tightened down some but I've owned Spyderco and ZT's that have had issues as well. I once got a CRK that had a bad grind. Once you start getting large samples of any production company you'll find issues. As someone pointed out earlier the Axis lock is great for left or right hand usage. My old man usually carried a liner lock made for right handed use for years and when I got him a Benchmade he loved that he could manipulate it with his left.

It seems like it's cool to trash Benchmade these days.

 

[boss_crew]

It seems like it's cool to trash Benchmade these days.

This!



It is impossible to avoid all errors in machine manufacturing. Humans inspect for errors, but impossible to avoid all human error.

I expect every company to have knives with errors, but in 2018 we need to be totally outraged about something all the time and this is a great thing to be outraged about at the moment!

I am outraged!

 

[Whitedog]

Grab your hazmat gear, I smell something stinky!