R. R. Branstrom | Daily Press KnivesShipFree, based in Ooltewah, Tenn., is a longtime distributor of Bark River Knives and primarily operates as an online retailer. The company's CEO J Rouch commented on Bark River Knives' closure and the fallout they are experiencing as a distributor.

ESCANABA — The chief executive of a major distributor of Bark River Knives — the former Escanaba company that shuttered without notice two weeks ago — says it is facing significant losses while trying to protect customers due to Bark River’s use of Chinese steel in some of its knives, which were marketed as being made in the United States.

KnivesShipFree, based in Ooltewah, Tennessee, has served as an online distributor of Bark River Knives, with a showroom at its Tennessee location. “We’re doing everything we can to take care of customers,” said J Rouch, CEO of KnivesShipFree. “We’re taking huge losses.”

Rouch said he learned of the company’s closure after Bark River Knives’ owner Mike Stewart’s March 23 announcement. Stewart could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday. In Stewart’s announcement, he acknowledged what amounted to questionable business practices at Bark River Knives. He wrote that an alternate Chinese steel had been used in limited production runs, affecting several models including the Camp Bolo, Fox River Trailing Point, Highwayman 4, Mini-Manitou, Gladstone Hunter, Bitterroot Caper and two club knives. Those knives included the “Made in the USA” stamp on the blade.

In response, KnivesShipFree removed affected products from its website and is offering customers prepaid return shipping. Orders outside the return window qualify for full store credit with no expiration. “It’s frustrating, because we’re the ones trying to do the right thing and it’s going to cost us even more money. … We’re also losing the trust of our customers, which is the worst part,” Rouch said. “I will not sell mislabeled knives on our website.”

Before the company closed after 25 years in operation, Rouch said there were warning signs with quality.

“I noticed their fit and finish — the quality — had gotten worse, so we were sending a lot more things back for rework,” Rouch said. “And the speed of the knives coming out changed drastically.”

Rouch said his company previously released new Bark River models weekly or biweekly. That slowed to monthly releases and eventually every six weeks.

“At the same time, I just thought they were going through some growing pains,” he said.

Bark River Knives sold through multiple other distributors, including DLT Trading, Klingenwelt, Blue Ridge Knives and Bushcraft Canada.

According to Rouch, KnivesShipFree currently holds about $3 million in Bark River inventory. He said that Bark River owes his company hundreds of thousands of dollars, which he does not expect to recover.

Rouch said he was contacted by Michigan State Police, and his company is working with them in their investigation. When contacted, MSP would neither confirm nor deny the existence of an active investigation.

KnivesShipFree goes through an extensive process to ensure the products they receive align with the invoice from companies such as Bark River Knives.

“We inspect it for fit and finish, and if it’s not good enough, we send it back,” said Rouch. “But at the same point, we’ve always trusted that the blade steel is marked and that what we were invoiced for was what it really was.”

While Rouch said the company has not previously tested the elemental composition of blade steel from other manufacturers, they are proceeding cautiously.

“It’s on our radar now. I can’t believe somebody with a long history of being part of the knife community would go out like this,” Rouch said.

The company has also begun sending products to a third-party supplier to verify steel composition, though Rouch said he believes only the models listed by Stewart were affected.

In Stewart’s statement, he said his son, Jim Stewart, plans to open a new, independent knife company and has agreed to assume warranty responsibilities previously handled by Bark River Knives.