Warther Cutlery breaks ground on new facility

For generations Warther Cutlery has been the go-to source for area families for kitchen knives. This year will mark one of the largest expansions in the company’s history with groundbreaking begun on a $1.4 million project moving all cutlery manufacturing to another, more visible building. The new structure also will house the cutlery division’s retail store.

With a target completion in winter 2018, Warther Cutlery President Stephen Cunningham said, “We would like very much to see the new building completed in fourth quarter this year, but that remains to be seen.”

Cunningham has been an employee of the firm for the past 15 years.

The new knife shop and store will be housed in a two-story building at the intersection of Tuscarawas and Slingluff avenues in plain sight with street frontage. Benchmark Construction of New Philadelphia will be handling the project.

The May 4 groundbreaking ceremony, which was attended by approximately 60 people, included local dignitaries and a brief shoveling event with six golden spades emblazoned with the Warther Cutlery logo.

Mark Warther spoke of the family’s long dedication to making high-quality knives and recognized those who have helped build the company along the way.

“We are very blessed,” he said, “to have many very talented nonfamily members who have been with us for many years.”

Dover Mayor Rick Homrighausen said he was “pleased with the plans for the new building. It will be very visible to residents here as a point of pride, and the new location will enable visitors to see it more clearly.”

State Rep. Al Landis was on hand to present a proclamation from the Ohio General Assembly.

“This project began as a wish many years ago,” Cunningham said. “Then it began to take shape realistically about three years ago. The past year has seen things develop very quickly, and here we are today.”

James Nixon, retired Dover High School teacher, has been a part of the knife-making staff since his teen years. He said the new facility would solve many problems for the company. “The knife shop is very cramped. We’ve been adding new products and have plans for more, and the machinery required to do that takes up more space.”

Nixon spoke of the difficulty of cleaning the shop as the tight quarters require “plenty of bending and squeezing past and reaching around them.”

Nixon said the new shop and store would free up more room for the museum itself as well as allow for quieter tours. “Some of the new lathes make a lot of noise, and at times you can hear that on the tours. This will also eliminate a constant problem with fine dust in the museum building. The whole project will work on several fronts: street visibility, more space, a better and larger showroom, and the ability to show off new products to better advantage while helping the museum itself,” he said.

Cunningham credited company VP Brian Carlisle for his work in helping to bring the project to fruition. Carlisle said he was proud that Warther Museum and Cutlery have always been a big part of the story for families in the area.

“We are constantly working to come up with new product ideas and new lines,” Cunningham said, adding that the traditional knife-sharpening service would always be available in the new facility as well as the ability to watch as knives are being made. A dedicated conference room for community meetings will be available on the mezzanine floor, overlooking the store itself.

Warther’s employs some 17-20 employees, Cunningham explained, but only “about four guys are making knives regularly."

Because of this, Cunningham said, "That means that every single knife we make is handled by those craftspeople.”

Cunningham said the firm sold 28,000 knives last year. “Made by just four guys, that’s pretty impressive.” He said the company will be looking to add craftspeople to the employee roster with the new, high-capacity building.

The company recently introduced a line of hunting knives and black-handled kitchen knives, which Cunningham said reflected changing tastes among younger buyers.

Warther Cutlery is at www.warthercutlery.com.