Hi there, is the knife element an absolute must?

No, not at all. The switchblade name primarily comes from having interchangeable paddle blades, secondarily it is cutting edge and will be memorable.

I also avoided the knife as it would have made the design very busy.

The concept is parallel work on the graphic(iconic) part and the logotype which is slightly edited refined.

Would love to hear any thoughts you might have on it.

Kind Regards,