What MKS DESIGN does

MKS Design is a privately held designer-maker founded in 2008 and headquartered at 84 Rice Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts. The company operates two product lines under founder Adam Simha: a custom professional kitchen knife collection and a line of modern furniture built mostly from steel. The knife line features an original injection-molded grip design paired with naturally bacteria-resistant stainless steel tubing and bench-made blades, with each knife individually tuned for weight, balance, and edge characteristics; blades are tempered to Rockwell C 56.5 hardness and offered in multiple steel variants (13C26, 440-C, 154CM, SF77), with body geometry drawn from both Asian and Western traditions.

The catalog includes Chefs knives (7", 8", 9", 10"), Fillet (8"), Boning (6.5"), Paring (3.75"), Deep Paring (3"), Petty/Utility (5.5"), and a Mezza-Luna, plus accessories such as a Diamond Steel, a Knife Block (designed by Leonardo Amerigo Bonanni), and a Rawhide Honing Strap. Knives can be ordered with custom handles in multiple colors and grip styles, and a separate "Pedro" handle option is offered for wet or slippery conditions.

The business model is direct-to-consumer: knives and furniture are sold through the mksdesign.com e-commerce site, with a catalog request channel and a knife-specific microsite at mksknife.com. Go-to-market relies on PR in food and design publications (Atlantic Monthly, Boston Globe, Wallpaper* i.d., Surface, Boston Home, Kitchenware News), video content, and a community-led referral loop anchored by testimonials from James Beard-affiliated chefs. The firm has 14 employees, no institutional funding, and no disclosed pricing or revenue.

Name

MKS DESIGN

Legal name

MKS Design

Website

https://mksdesign.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

MKS Design is a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based designer-maker founded in 2008 by Adam Simha, producing bench-made custom professional kitchen knives with proprietary injection-molded grips and a complementary line of modern steel furniture, sold direct-to-consumer to professional chefs and cooking enthusiasts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Direct Knife Sales: The company sells knives directly through their e-commerce website (mksdesign.com/shoppingcart.html). Customers can purchase knives online with options for different handle colors and accessories.
2. Catalog Sales: Customers can request a catalog by providing their contact information. This suggests catalog-based ordering as a sales channel alongside online sales.
3. Custom Knife Orders: The company offers custom handled knives for customers who want personalized products, as evidenced by chef testimonials mentioning custom handled knives.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

MKS Design manufactures and sells custom professional kitchen knives and modern furniture from Cambridge, Massachusetts. The knife line features bench-made blades paired with proprietary injection-molded grips and bacteria-resistant stainless steel tubing, individually tuned for weight, balance, and edge. The furniture line offers original modern designs constructed primarily from steel.

Product overview

MKS Design is a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company offering two core product lines: professional kitchen knives and modern furniture. The knife line is a unified collection of bench-made kitchen knives featuring injection molded grips with stainless steel tubing, available in various sizes from paring to chefs knives. All knives share consistent body geometry and are individually tuned for weight, balance, and edge. Accessories include knife blocks, diamond steels, honing straps, and optional knife rolls. The furniture line features original modern furniture designs with steel as the primary material.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 7" Chefs Knife 7-inch professional chef's knife from the MKS Knife line, weighing 12oz, designed for tight workspaces and marketed as a possible 'one and only' knife. Features the proprietary injection-molded grip, stainless steel tubing, and bench-made blade with Asian-Western hybrid geometry.
• 8" Chefs Knife 8-inch professional chef's knife weighing 10oz, light and consistently thin across the blade with a Western-styled Asian feel. Part of the MKS Knife core product line.
• 9" Chefs Knife 9-inch professional chef's knife weighing 15oz, with a slightly heftier feel. Positioned as a strong 'one and only' knife option in the MKS Knife line.
• 10" Chefs Knife 10-inch professional chef's knife weighing 15oz, long and deep with a deft feel, marketed as a knife a user will likely not need to exceed. Standard handle variant.
• 10" Chefs Knife with Pedro Handle 10-inch professional chef's knife variant with a slightly shorter, grippier 'Pedro' handle weighing 15oz, designed for wet or slippery conditions.
• 8" Fillet Knife 8-inch fillet knife weighing 8oz, light and flexible, designed for fish and fine slicing tasks. Part of the MKS Knife line.
• 6.5" Boning Knife 6.5-inch boning knife weighing 7.5oz with a heavy spine, designed for breaking down chicken, beef, game, or waterfowl.
• 3.75" Paring Knife 3.75-inch traditional paring knife weighing 3oz, designed for small precise work in the kitchen.
• 3" Deep Paring Knife 3-inch deep paring knife weighing 3oz, with a deeper blade offering more knuckle room — useful for mincing garlic, sectioning small fruit, and de-veining shrimp.
• 5.5" Petty/Utility Knife 5.5-inch petty/utility knife weighing 5oz, designed to bridge the gap between chef's and paring knives with a shorter grip and light, thin profile.
• 3.75" Mezza-Luna 3.75-inch mezza-luna weighing 8oz with an offset handle, designed for chopping ingredients in a bowl.
• 10" Diamond Steel 10-inch diamond sharpening steel weighing 11oz, sold as a knife maintenance accessory for the MKS Knife line.
• Knife Block Knife storage block designed by Leonardo Amerigo Bonanni, sold as an accessory to the MKS Knife product line.
• Knife Handle Grips and Honing Accessories Customizable handle grip options (red, blue, green, or black) and alternate BMX-style grips, along with a Rawhide leather honing strap included with every knife. Optional DMT fine or extra-fine diamond sharpening steels and a clear plastic knife roll are available for storage and transport.
• Modern Steel Furniture Collection Original modern furniture line, primarily constructed from steel, designed and produced in Cambridge, Massachusetts for residential and commercial interiors.

Quantifiable outcome

• Rockwell C 56.5 hardness provides exceptional blade durability and edge retention

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Emerging players

• Tojiro: Tojiro is a Japanese cutlery maker offering professional-grade kitchen knives at more accessible price points with rising U.S. direct-to-consumer distribution. It represents the value-tier premium competitor pressing on MKS's segment from below.

Direct peers

• Messermeister: Messermeister is a California-based premium kitchen cutlery brand emphasizing handcrafted German-steel knives and direct-to-chef marketing. Comparable to MKS in serving professional chefs with mid-to-premium priced cutlery and a craftsmanship-led brand story.
• Bob Kramer Knives: Bob Kramer is a legendary American bladesmith producing handcrafted, custom chef knives in small batches, sold direct and through select channels. Like MKS, it serves professional chefs and serious enthusiasts with high-end individually crafted cutlery and a personal-designer brand narrative.
• Mac Knife: Mac Knife is a Japanese-style professional kitchen cutlery brand widely adopted by chefs for its thin, hard blades and light weight. MKS's Asian-Western hybrid geometry and chef-endorsement model closely mirror Mac's go-to-market approach.
• Lamson & Goodnow: Lamson is a Massachusetts-based (since 1837) American cutlery maker offering professional-grade kitchen knives sold direct and through dealers. It is the most direct U.S.-made peer to MKS's small-batch professional cutlery positioning.
• Yoshihiro Cutlery: Yoshihiro offers handcrafted Japanese chef knives sold direct-to-consumer with multi-steel and custom-handle options. Comparable to MKS in targeting chef-grade buyers with made-to-order premium cutlery via e-commerce.

Regional players

• Korin Japanese Trading: Korin is a New York-based Japanese knife specialist retailer and importer serving U.S. professional chefs with premium traditional Japanese cutlery. It is a regional channel peer that competes for the same NYC/Boston chef customer base as MKS.

Broad incumbents

• Shun Cutlery: Shun is a premium Japanese-style cutlery brand under KAI USA with broad retail distribution and chef-grade positioning. It is the broader incumbent analog to MKS, occupying the same premium chef-endorsement segment but at much larger scale.
• Global Knives: Global is a globally recognized Japanese-style professional cutlery brand with extensive retail and restaurant supply distribution. It competes for the same professional chef audience as MKS but at significantly broader scale and visibility.
• Wüsthof: Wüsthof is a 200+ year-old German premium cutlery maker with global retail presence and a strong reputation among professional and home chefs. It represents the large-established-incumbent analog to MKS's premium positioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mks-design

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MKS DESIGN