Noodler's Ink Bottle Changing from Glass to Plastic

Today, Nathan Tardiff, the Willy Wonka of our niche fountain pen ink market, has announced a drastic change within the Noodler's Ink lineup of bottled inks. The iconic 3oz glass bottle may be no more.

As Nathan talks about in his You Tube video, changes within the glass bottle vendors he used to source the Noodler's bottles have forced his hand to make a decision : either switch to a smaller glass bottle that would up the cost of Noodler's Ink across the board, or make a change to plastic bottles.

Declining to take the approach that so many pen manufacturers have done over the years, the President of Noodler's Ink opted to keep prices the same, while offering better value with the new 3oz plastic bottles.

As he demonstrates in the video, the additional head space toward the top of the bottle actually allows for more ink to be included in the new plastic bottle than in the original glass container. The new plastic Noodler's ink bottles are also lighter and will have less issues with breakage when being shipped. The opaque bottle also blocks UV light from damaging the color of the ink in the bottle.

We had just received our first shipment of Noodler's Bulletproof Black in the new plastic ink bottles and were quite surprised as to how much more can fit in a typical case package. In the past, when we order a case of Noodler's 3oz ink, we would get 144 glass bottles per case. Now, one case constituted 320 ink bottles, over double the amount of ink for the same package.

Considering how much Noodler's we ship on a daily basis, the savings in shipping costs will be a welcome change in the overall scheme of things.

Although Nathan states that the change is temporary and glass bottles may make a comeback by the end of 2015 or beginning of 2016, the tone of his message made it seem like this can be a permanent solution and that the glass bottles of old will be considered "vintage" Noodler's Ink.

What do you think about the change to the plastic bottles? Drop us a line and comment below to tell us whether you think it's a good change or otherwise.

Quincy Jones Cuts Ribbon at Grand Opening of Montegrappa Flagship Store in Italy

July 10th in Bassano del Grappa, Italy - the global headquarters for the Montegrappa company - the oldest and most celebrated Italian pen manufacturer cut the ribbon on their flagship store in grand fashion.

Montegrappa, primarily known for their writing instruments, has built their reputation upon the quality and artistry of their pens. Since Guiseppe Aquila had purchased the company back from the Richemont group several years ago, the brand has attained new heights in the luxury market, expanding their manufacturing repertoire to include cufflinks, fragrances, leather accessories, watches and licensed products in cooperations with such prominent icons like Muhammad Ali, DC Comics (Batman), Elvis, Frank Sinatra and so on. Their business had already expanded overseas to open boutiques in Dubai, Moscow, Doha & Riyadh. The opening of their flagship store in Bassano del Grappa was like a homecoming, proudly displaying how high the brand has risen internationally while keeping their roots steeped in Italian heritage.

Famed musician and muse of his own limited edition set of Montegrappa writing instruments, Quincy Jones participated in cutting the ceremonial ribbon to officially open the doors of the boutique. The guest of honor has his own section of the boutique dedicated to the pen that bears his name and ineffable style.

On the second floor of the ancient renovated palace, the first Bugatti and Bently fashion boutiques made a home for themselves and include pens & cufflinks made for Bugatti exclusively by Montegrappa.

The opening was a "Blue Carpet" event, attracting plenty of glitz and glam and providing cocktails and live music to party into the night. You can view all the professional press photographs here.

Top Pen Trends of 2010

Goldspot works with dozens of brands and manufacturers every year that roll out their newest styles and colors to captivate the fine writing market. Some ideas tend to overlap when a need has been discovered for a particular type of pen. Here are the hottest pen trends that we have found in 2010 (in no particular order):

• Always Bet on Black -  The style of black on black has been a hot one replicated by several prominent brands. For example, Monteverde has their Invincia Stealth Black, Retro 51 made a Tornado Stealth and Parker released their Premier Special Edition in all black. 
• More Special Editions - Speaking of the Premier Special Edition, more manufacturers are leaning toward producing limited runs (in the neighborhood of 50 pieces) of pens that use a specific material or design that is exclusive to the production. Conway Stewart has been offering a special edition finish every month that usually sells out. Just recently, Visconti developed a few Opera Club special colors that are in short supply.
• A Rollerball that Writes Like a Fountain - Both Visconti and Monteverde have jockeyed for the claim to fame that they are producing a rollerball pen that refills like a fountain pen. On one side, you have the Monteverde Invincia Ink Ball, which is a current iteration of the Mega Ink Ball pens that were once popular a few years ago, but have sizzled after the economy tanked. In the opposing corner, you have the Visconti Rembrandt Eco Roller, which promotes eco-friendly writing, despite needing a new replacement front end every 15 fills.
• Paper is Important, Too - With a resurgence in idea notebooks like the Moleskine, writers and creatives across the world are now toting a little black book to dump all ideas, sketches and brilliant (or not-so-brilliant schemes) that may come to mind. However, fountain pen users have quickly responded to the sub quality paper for their nibs. In comes Rhodia, who has filled the market demand for high-quality, affordable notebooks that work like a dream with any fountain pen. Rhodia has worked out so well that Levenger decided to offer their infamous Circa notebook system with Rhodia paper.

Ordering "Off Menu" Pens

To kick off June, we would like to talk about a topic that has been coming up more frequently in the last year or so. Part of it has to do with the economy (what doesn't these days), but the overall idea is better customer service on the part of the pen-makers and a more contemporary mindset of manufacturing. It's similar to what the restaurants call ordering "off menu."

Typically, you have a standard set of offerings from each pen manufacturer, similar to a menu at your favorite neighborhood restaurant. For example, Lamy has a regular set of colors for the Studio collection : black, palladium, blue and brushed stainless steel. Sometimes, they add a limited edition color into the mix, like Violet. Anything out of the normal or limited release of colors is not available. They would look at us with three heads if we tried to order an Orange Studio pen. And a McDonalds employee may do a double take if you request lasagna.

What seems to be the trend in the industry is that the pen-makers are becoming more accommodating to special requests, one-offs and small runs of customized designs. Brian from Edison Pens has made a living of it. Conway Stewart is offering a limited edition pen (50 piece runs) every month with a different, unique finish. You can custom design the look of a Retro51 Tornado or a Sherpa pen, provided that the minimum order is met. Even a Delta or Monteverde pen can be slightly modified in color or design to produce a special edition (minimum order as well).

Fountain pen nibs, usually offered in medium or fine, can be special ordered in a variety of sizes, depending on the brand and model of the pen.

Pen folks : Open your imaginations! It never hurts to ask for a special request.

Pelikan Inks Deal with Porsche Design writing instruments

It has been confirmed from several sources that Porsche Design had signed a co-operation agreement at the beginning of the year that designates Pelikan as their new license partner, replacing Faber-Castell. According to an article on The Moodie Report, Pelikan has the ability to produce writing instruments under the Porsche Design brand from Jan 1st, 2010 onward. We had the pleasure of meeting with the Pelikan VP of Sales earlier this month and he had mentioned that, although the agreement had been made, new Porsche designs made by Pelikan were still months, if not a year, away. For now, they will be distributing current styles manufactured by Faber-Castell. This move should be a great improvement for the Porsche brand. Pelikan is well-known for their world-class craftsmanship in producing top-tier writing instruments. It will be interesting to see a Porsche-branded, piston-filling fountain pen with the same high-quality nibs that Pelikan crafts for their pens.