Leatherman

The story of Leatherman began in 1975 when founder Tim Leatherman was on a trip to Europe and was looking in vain for a toolbox, especially the pliers he was missing. The idea of producing multifunctional tools was born. Less than ten years later, the Leatherman company was officially founded in 1983 in Portland.

During a month-long journey across Europe and the Middle East, he made the first designs for the Leatherman 'Pocket Survival Tool' as he had to repair his fragile car and had no money. The 'made in USA' tool knives he had with him were of no use and Leatherman was initially forced to buy heavy and space-consuming classic tools.

Back home, the engineer refined his first sketches and, with the help of his brother-in-law, a trained mechanic, developed the first prototype of the 'Pocket Survival Tool' in 1977. Tim Leatherman's vision of producing a knife with fully functioning pliers, a blade and other functional tools, packaged in the handles of the pliers, now became a reality.

The first 'Pocket Survival Tool' with a length of 101 mm, a width of 25 mm, a height of 11 mm and a weight of only 146 grams was born. Initially only made for himself, Tim Leatherman continued to tinker and developed a locking mechanism for the tool's functions. This was followed in 1980 by the completion of the 'Mr. Crunch' model, which, unlike the other Leatherman tools, had gripping pliers. However, sales were initially difficult and Tim Leatherman had to fight until 1982 to get his tools onto the market.

It was not until 1983 that Leatherman and his college friend Steve Berliner founded the Leatherman Tool Group Inc. and began producing the first tools. Leatherman now leads the pocket tool industry in terms of sales, quality and innovation.