BRAND PROFILE: WÜSTHOF
June/July 2026
housewareslive.net
‘A knife is more than its technical advantages - it’s something you use every day, and the better it works, the more you enjoy cooking’
With more than 200 years of knife-making heritage behind it, Wüsthof is evolving to meet a new generation of consumers without losing sight of its roots. Housewares Magazine’s Will McGill attended an exclusive event at Harrods with seventh-generation Co-owner Viola Wüsthof.
craftsmanship and quality. “’Made in Solingen’ has a special meaning,” Ms Wüsthof says. “It
represents a particular level of craftsmanship and quality, and it’s important that we continue investing in our manufacturing there.” In an industry where many manufacturers have shifted production
overseas, Wüsthof continues to make every knife in its own factory, something that has become as much a statement of values as a manufacturing decision. “What excited me most when I joined the company 15 years ago was discovering that everything was true. You walk downstairs into the factory and every knife comes out of that building. It’s not a case of sourcing products from somewhere else and simply putting our name on them.”
That authenticity has become one of the company’s greatest
strengths, giving Wüsthof a story that cannot be copied. “It’s very easy as a family member to stand behind the brand because
M
ore than 200 years after the first Wüsthof knife left the family’s workshop in Solingen, Germany, the seventh generation is already thinking about the eighth.
For Viola Wüsthof, heritage has little value if it simply celebrates the past. Instead, it should provide the foundation for whatever comes next. “My task is to prepare the company for the next generation.” Inside the business, that philosophy has become known as Project 8. “I’m the seventh generation and I have a son who’s eight years old, so he still has plenty of time. But that’s exactly how I see my responsibility. My role is to ensure the business is ready for Generation Eight.” It’s a philosophy shaped by long-term thinking rather than short-
term targets. Retail continues to evolve, consumers discover brands differently than they did a decade ago and premium products have to work harder than ever to justify their place in increasingly competitive markets. Yet while almost every aspect of the industry has changed, one thing has not. Every Wüsthof knife is still manufactured in Solingen, the German city whose reputation for blade making has become synonymous with
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it’s a real story.” But while heritage creates credibility, it no longer creates connection on its own. One of the biggest changes within the business has been the way Wüsthof talks about its products, moving away from technical specifications and towards the experiences those products make possible. “When I
started, we would explain a knife by saying, ‘It’s made from chromium- molybdenum- vanadium steel, it’s 58 Rockwell
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