Japanese engineering made in the USA - an exemplary symbiosis of passion, fascination and quality awareness for extraordinary knives, made for extraordinary people and, in view of the turbulent history, a reconciliatory sign of rapprochement between the two countries. However, the common line of KAI, Kershaw and Zero Tolerance could not begin further apart, both geographically, politically and strategically.
Pete Kershaw, a nature-loving angler, hunter and tinkerer, always had the right equipment with him on his excursions into the wilderness: weatherproof clothing, a sense of adventure and, of course, the right knife. In 1974, he decided to share this passion in order to bring nature even closer to other people. In Lake Oswego in the US state of Oregon, he founded the Kershaw company near a cement factory. Initially, the focus was on the production of hunting and outdoor knives. On the other side of the globe, in the land of the rising sun, the KAI company has been producing blades of outstanding quality and reputation since 1908. President and CEO Saijiro Endo II planned a growth course at the end of the 1970s with strong consolidation, especially on the North American continent. The market potential, the philosophy and the unconditional demand for quality were decisive reasons for both sides for the joint cooperation, which has lasted ever since. In the mid-1990s, the first folding pocket knife from Kershaw rolled off the production line. Since then, the focus has shifted more and more to EDC and tactical knives. With an investment in expansion in 1996, the production facility was relocated to Wilsonville in order to optimally exploit the market potential.
After Pete Kershaw retired from the day-to-day business, Jack Irigashi took charge of operations and gave the company a fresh airing. The ambition: to become a pioneer in quality, technology and innovation in order to gain further market share with an optimal price-performance ratio. The vision became reality and Kershaw revolutionised, for example, the spring-assisted opening with the SpeedSafe mechanism.
Zero Tolerance, which was founded in 2006 by KAI USA as a manufacturer of premium knives for professional use by the military, police and security services, has a completely different approach. The mission knives stand for the best materials, intuitive usability, advanced design, state-of-the-art technologies and, last but not least, Made in USA quality. In the course of time, a growing fan community also developed outside of professional use, so that in the following years ZT aimed for an EDC-oriented orientation without losing sight of its own roots.
The Zero Tolerance 0350 is considered a milestone, the first assisted folder to delight professional and private users alike. It is therefore no coincidence that the knives have recently earned the reputation of being "powerful beasts". As a testament to their tireless work, numerous awards decorate the corridors of KAI USA, including the Blade Show's Overall Knife of the Year Award for the Zero Tolerance 0777 with Sub-Frame Lock. Today, Kershaw and Zero Tolerance continue to work on new designs and technologies at their headquarters in Tualatin, Oregon.