Kikuichi Displays More Than 700 Years of Family Tradition 

By Lorrie Baumann

Kikuichi is the oldest knife company in the world, tracing its history to 1267, when the company made samurai swords for Japan’s warrior class. The modern iteration of the company happened in the 1860s when the emperor of Japan outlawed the samurai, thus eliminating the market for those swords, and the company turned its expertise instead to crafting knives.

Today Kikuichi operates under the leadership of its fifth generation family owner, President and Chief Executive Officer Ikuyo Yanagisawa, and continues to maintain its historic legacy of craftsmanship and quality. “We make everything from traditional hand-forged knives in the samurai tradition to the modern knives in western shapes,” said Harry Rosenblum, General Manager for Kikuichi New York, Inc.

This year at the International Home + Housewares Show, Kikuichi debuted its new Semi-Stainless line, a line of six SKUs with blades that are made of stainless steel with a high percentage of carbon, designed to combine the performance of a carbon steel knife with the easier care of a stainless steel blade, according to Rosenblum. “It won’t rust the way a high carbon steel knife will, but it takes that edge that chefs like,” he said. The Kikuichi Semi-Stainless line will be offered in a Petty Knife, Santoku, Nakiri, 8-inch and 9.5-inch Chef Knife and as a 10.5-inch Slicer.

“The industry itself has gone in a very interesting direction. Consumers are looking for Japanese-made, and they’re looking for high-quality,” Rosenblum said. “People are well informed, and consumers appreciate the history of Kikuichi, and they appreciate the quality.”