Introduction

The iconic swiss army knife is made by two companies, Wenger and Victorinox. They have branched out from swiss army knifes to make other gear, including laptop backpacks and briefcases. I got a wenger computer briefcase. It developed a problem with the shoulder strap wearing excessively in two spots. Victorinox services Wenger warranty claims, so I contacted them. It turns out there is a third company that makes briefcases with swiss army logos on them. To add to the confusion, the third companies bag has a Wenger label inside of it. The company is called Group III international. You will note there is nothing other than a home page at this location.

I contacted Victorinox Apr-18-2019. I didn't hear from them for awhile, so I called them May-03-2019. They told me that Wenger didn't make the briefcase, but that Group III did. The had contacted Group III Apr-26-2019, but they said they didn't reply. They tried to contact them again, but got no response. I also contacted Group III May-10-2019. I got no response. I tried calling Group III many times. They never answered their phone. Group III has never answered Victorinox or my email. Finally, Victorinox decided to ship me a new shoulder strap, even though it was not their problem. If you are going to buy a briefcase or a backpack, make sure it is made by Victorinox. If the gear says Wenger, it is not obvious if it is made by Wenger or Group III.

According to Wikipedia "Wenger was acquired by rival Victorinox in 2005." and "In North America, licensed products using the Wenger and SwissGear trademarks are owned independently from Victorinox SA, and are used to market camping equipment (particularly tents, backpacks and sleeping bags), luggage, backpacks and office/business needs." So what this means to consumers, is unless it says Victorinox, you can't count on any support. Because of zero communication and support from Group III, I am making them weasel of the month.

Damage to briefcase

Here you can see the damaged shoulder strap where it has frayed significantly near the center padded area. Also visible is the strap frayed near the end of the strap, where it attaches to the pack. You can see the Seiss Army logo on the handle in red, the pack in red, and the shouldst strap padded area in black.

Interior pockets

These are pictures of the inside, pocketed area of the briefcase. Note the iconic swiss army knife pouch, with the Wenger brand name and the swiss Army logo.

Laptop compartment

This is a view of the laptop compartment. The fabric has a watermark pattern saying Swiss Gear, with the Swiss Army logo. The buckle has the Swiss Army logo, with the text 'Since 1983'.

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