BLADE Staff

Benchmade Knife Co. announced today that its founder and CEO, Les de Asis, will assume the duties of company president effective immediately.

The move is a result of the pending departure of Greg Mooney, who had been Benchmade’s president since January 2007. Mr. Mooney has taken the job of vice president and general manager of Benelli USA, which is based in Accokeek, Maryland.

“Since joining Benchmade in 1997, Greg has played a significant role in numerous parts of our company, from sales and marketing to operations and manufacturing management. He was responsible for hiring and developing an experienced management team that has led growth throughout our organization. We’re sad to see Greg go, but wish him success in his new role at Benelli,” said de Asis, who started Benchmade in Oregon in 1990. “We have achieved some impressive results for all of our brands over the past several years, which has been very satisfying given the challenges posed by a tough economy. While I will again be president of Benchmade, I will continue to be supported by a very strong management team that has been in place for several years. I only expect our company and brands to continue on their impressive growth path.”

In addition to the Benchmade branded product line, the company also designs, manufactures and markets Lone Wolf Knives, Harley-Davidson Knives and HK Knives. All Benchmade branded products are made in the USA.

In order to keep pace with the recent growth that Benchmade has experienced in both domestic and international markets, the company recently added over 30,000 square feet of manufacturing and office space at its headquarters outside Portland, Oregon. According to the Benchmade news release, the workforce at the factory and headquarters has also increased over 35 percent in the past three years. Significant staff and management have been added to engineering, finance and sales.

“The portfolio of brands that we’ve assembled is very strong and has helped our dealer partners succeed in a difficult retail environment. I have the utmost confidence in our management team and look forward to supporting their efforts to drive future growth and expansion,” commented de Asis.

We welcome and congratulate the newest Master Smiths and Journeyman Smiths in the American Bladesmith Society who had their work juried by the ABS Judging Panels at the Blade Show in Atlanta on June 10, 2011 and were awarded their stamps.

Master Smiths:

Adam DeRosiers, Tommy Gann, Kyle Royer,

*Adam DesRosiers of Alaska earned the BR Hughes award for the best knife submitted by a Master Smith candidate.

Journeyman Smiths:

Bruce Barnett, Shayne Carter, Haley DesRosiers, Kevin Evans, Billy Helton, Kent Hicks, Tony Hughes, Dave Loukides, Tad Lynch, Randy Neilson, Tony Neilson, Ralph (Bud) Richards, Paul Savage

* Haley DesRosiers of Alaska earned the George Peck award for the best knife submitted by a Journeyman Smith candidate.

Congratulations to all!!

I just finished writing a profile of Jack Dagger as part of a throwing knives contest we’re holding at the Cutting Edge Knife Blog. Jack’s a great guy and really interesting.

Not only does he have a good story, but he also agreed to give away a set of his throwing knives and an autographed copy of his instructional video to our first-prize winner; that’s in addition to the $100 in cash we were already offering.

To learn how to enter and win, go here.