Watch the entire stream ➡ https://youtu.be/yTJC_is8CFM
So, word on the street is that Valken is officially out of business. A few people posted about it, including Will Ball for Soup, citing “well-connected industry sources” who say it’s not just bankruptcy restructuring anymore. It’s over. GI apparently confirmed that Valken has shut down completely. Not exactly a surprise if you’ve been following paintball at all in the last few years.
Valken’s been in trouble for a while. They owe over a million dollars to a company they were supposed to be paying back under Chapter 11. But since they haven’t made those payments, the courts might force them into Chapter 7, which is full liquidation. On top of that, Gino Pastorivo, the longtime owner, has reportedly been dealing with serious health issues. Between all that and the fact that they haven’t released a new product in years, this really just feels like the end of a slow decline.
If you’ve been around the game long enough, you probably remember when Valken was actually a solid company. Back around 2015, they made gear like the V-Max hopper and the VSL loader. Not game changers, but decent mid-tier options. They also had the Valken Code marker, which flopped pretty hard. What they really did well was supply everything. If you were a field or a store, you could get pods, pants, packs, tanks, paint, all from Valken. But lately, they’ve had nothing. No innovation, no new gear, not even restocks. They leaned into airsoft and a few other side markets, but it never really clicked.
People are saying this shows the industry is dying. Maybe. But it might just be that Valken stopped showing up. The companies that are still making stuff like HK are doing fine because they’re actually offering products players want. Valken just faded out.
The only thing I’ll miss is their old camo gear. For a solid run in the late 2000s and early 2010s, they made some of the best woodsball jerseys and pants out there. Other than that, not much lost.
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