Wenger was a Swiss cutlery manufacturer that exists today as a line of once rival Victorinox, and a brand name for watches and licensed products owned by it. Founded in 1893, it was best known as one of two companies to manufacture Swiss Army knives. Based in Delémont, Wenger was acquired in 2005 by Victorinox and partially absorbed. Since 2013, Wenger Swiss Army knives are integrated in the Victorinox collection as the "Delémont collection". History The history of Wenger S.A. is strongly linked to the history of the Swiss Army knife. Company origins The industrial cutlery house of Paul Boechat & Cie (the future Wenger) was founded 1893 at Courtételle in the Delémont valley in the Canton of Jura. It received a contract from the Swiss Army to produce knives as the second industrial cutlery manufacturer of Switzerland. In 1897 Theodore Wenger, a minister who had served in the US, was returning home to Switzerland and was hired by the group of entrepreneurs that had bought Boechat & Cie two years earlier (later renaming the company Wenger et Cie.). One of Wenger's first acts was to acquire a manufacturer of spoons and forks which he moved to a rented factory in Delémont. In 1900, a new facility was built. Both the utensil operations and the Courtételle cutlery production were incorporated into the new plant now called Fabrique Suisse de Coutellerie et Services. In 1908 the Swiss Army decided to split the contract, with half of the order going to Victorinox, in the German-speaking canton of Schwyz, and the other half to Wenger in the French-speaking part of the canton of Bern. In 1929, after Theo Wenger's death, Kaspar Oertli gained majority share in the company. Between 1929 and 2005 In 1988, Wenger started producing watches, one year before Victorinox. Crisis and restart After the 9/11 attacks all air traveling and related industries were facing a severe crisis. This was also the case for the Swiss Army knife manufacturers especially Wenger S.A. Changing airport security regulations which precluded the carrying of pocket knives diminished the sales of Swiss Army knives at duty-free shops. The crisis led to the acquisition of Wenger by its competitor Victorinox in 2005. With the backing of Victorinox, Wenger was able for a time to maintain its own production and branding of Swiss army knives and watches. Wenger knives had been advertised as the "Genuine Swiss Army