In 1890, in a small Savoie village in Maurienne, Joseph Opinel invented the pocket knife that now bears his name. The Opinel company located at Chambéry in the heart of the Alps, is still run by the descendants of Joseph Opinel and manufactures items whose quality has made the brand famous for more than 130 years. The collection contains knives and pocket tools for DIY, sport, outdoors activities and gardening as well as kitchen knives and table knives…
Made in France
Our pocket knives, table knives, kitchen knives and garden tools are made in France in our factory in Chambéry, in Savoy*.
The Chambéry factory employs 180 people, 120 of whom are directly involved in production.
To accompany business development, 2,000m2 of industrial buildings were added to the existing 4,000m2 (1,500m2 in 2015 and 500m2 in 2018)
In 2022, 6.5 million items were sold in more than 70 countries around the world for a turnover of 34.5 million euros, 45% of which was made through exports.
The American subsidiary Opinel USA was founded in Chicago in 2016, and markets the products from the brand in the United States.
* excepted the following products which are developed in Chambéry and manufactured by our partner in Portugal: hand pruner, Parallèle, part of the Intempora kitchen knives and Perpétue table cutlery.
Garden saw blades, sheaths, manual sharpener, honing and diamond sharpening steel and microfibers are made in Asia. Blocks, cutting boards and sharpening stones are made in Italia. The kitchen and table linen is made in France by the company Tissage Moutet.
A family of blacksmiths
OPINEL SAS is a family business; the president François Opinel and the general manager Denis Opinel are the great-grandsons of the founder Joseph Opinel. The operational management is run by two deputy general managers who oversee the managers in charge of industry, purchasing & development, marketing & communication and exports.
The Opinel Museum located in Saint Jean de Maurienne, Savoie is run by Maxime and Jacques Opinel, descendants of Jean Opinel, a blacksmith and the brother of Joseph Opinel.
Opinel's values
The company's values consist of a people-centric approach with a focus on maintaining and developing jobs in Chambéry, quality control via regular checks and continuous improvements to the entire production chain, and respect for the environment with the aim of reducing the impact of our business on nature (sorting and recycling of waste, and anti-waste policty, etc.).
Protecting the brand
One of the main reasons for the brand's success is protection of the brand, its products and expertise. And this is achieved through over 900 different protective measures (brands, models, patents and domain names) in nearly 100 countries. This began in 1909 with the trademark registration of the Opinel® brand, and subsequently on a regular basis, for example in 1955 and 2000 for the Virobloc® patent. The verbal brand Opinel®, the Crowned Hand® design and the shape of the knife are registered trademarks. Any modification whatsoever of Opinel® knives, in particular by adding or removing any element or by any other means, is prohibited. The monitoring of the markets by our teams and our commercial partners means we can quickly track down counterfeits and bring in our lawyers who are specialised in industrial property.
34.5
million euros of turnover in 2022
6.5
millions of knives per year
1
Annecy Shop
45%
export sales
1
museum
70
number of countries
180
employees
1
USA subisdiary
The Opinel Museum
The Opinel museum welcomes you to Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, a town of history and renown. All year round except Sundays and public holidays.
