Pens, Mechanical Pencils, and Parts

Industry Snapshot

In 2008, the pen and mechanical pencil industry was valued at $1 billion. Items manufactured by this industry include markers, highlighters, and correction products. The ballpoint pen, introduced to the U.S. market in 1945, continued to dominate writing instrument sales in the early twenty-first century. Retractable ballpoints outpaced stick ballpoints by a nearly 2 to 1 margin. By comparison, combined shipments of ballpoint pens surpassed those of wood encased pencils by over 800,000 units, and all pen products accounted for over 100,000 units more than those of all pencil products. Combined, pen, pencil, and marker manufacturing is a $4.8 billion industry.

Writing instruments are sold to wholesalers and retailers and resold to consumers through fine jewelry stores, stationery and office supply stores, department stores, discounters, mass merchandisers, catalog showrooms, and specialty stores, among others. Pen manufacturers produce writing instruments and are responsible for marketing and selling these products to retailers and consumers.

Background and Development

The earliest writing instruments were developed during the ancient civilizations of China, Greece, Egypt, and Mesopotamia nearly 5,000 years ago. Mesopotamians used wooden styluses to impress their characters on wet clay tablets. Egyptians used hollow reeds to apply ink on sheets of papyrus, while ancient Chinese drew ideograms with brushes made from animal hair.

Europeans began to use goose quills as ink pens in the sixth century, and this practice grew rapidly during the Middle Ages. Flocks of geese were specifically bred for their feathers, as quill production became an important industry throughout Europe. For nearly 1,000 years the quill pen remained the most popular writing instrument.

The steel pen replaced the quill during the nineteenth century. The steel pen point, or nib, first appeared in England sometime between 1790 and 1803, but was not manufactured efficiently or economically until the 1830s. U.S. inventor Lewis Edmon Waterman created the fountain pen 50 years later, which featured its own self-contained ink supply. Waterman's product ushered in a new generation of writing instruments that dominated the market during the first half of the twentieth century. His basic design, which included a metal nib, a built-in ink supply, and an outer shell, are still the main components of fountain pens today.

Fountain pens enjoyed a resurgence in popularity at the end of the twentieth century. According to retailers, most fountain pens were purchased by individuals or corporations for use as business gifts or promotional items. Two reasons for the fountain pen's popularity were its association as a status symbol and its improved technology, most notably replacement ink cartridges.

Ballpoint Pens
The ballpoint pen also dates to the late nineteenth century. This type of pen consists of a freely rotating metal ball housed in a socket. The ball, constantly covered in ink from a reservoir, rolls across a writing surface. A line 4,000 to 7,500 feet long can be drawn from most ball-point pens.

Commercial models of ballpoint pens appeared in 1895, with the first satisfactory model patented in Argentina by the Hungarian Lazlo Biro. His ballpoint pen, commonly called the "biro," quickly became popular in Great Britain during the late 1930s and 1940s. The ballpoint pen was introduced to the U.S. market in 1945. U.S. manufacturers quickly adopted the new design and soon dominated worldwide production in the ballpoint pen industry. By the late 1990s, more than three billion ballpoint pens were manufactured each year in a variety of styles, point sizes, and colors, with prices ranging from no-frills disposables selling for $1.00 a dozen to state-of-the-art, solid gold retractable pens costing hundreds of dollars.

Felt-Tip Pens
In 1964, the porous-point or "felt-tip" pen was developed in Japan. Papermate's Flair model was among the first of the felt-tip pens to appear on the U.S. market in the 1960s, and it has been the leader ever since. Following the initial success of felt-tips, manufacturers branched out with a variety of fiber-tipped instruments, including highlighters.

Roller Ball Pens
The roller ball pen, introduced in the late 1970s, was the most significant innovation in the writing instrument industry of the late twentieth century. This new type of ballpoint used low-viscosity ink and produced a smoother line. Technological advances achieved during the late 1980s and early 1990s greatly improved the roller ball's overall performance.

Industry Leaders

With Sanford and Sharpie in its offerings, among other brands in this industry category, Newell Rubbermaid was the leader in writing instruments. The company reported $6.47 billion in net sales for 2008. Headquartered in Atlanta, Newell Rubbermaid has approximately 20,400 employees worldwide. Its other divisions focus on tools and hardware, items for home and family, and cleaning products, among others. In 2000, Rubbermaid purchased Gillette's stationery products business, which included the Paper Mate, Parker, Waterman, and Liquid Paper user brands.

Based in Lincoln, Rhode Island, A. T. Cross Co. has been a major international manufacturer of fine writing instruments sold to the consumer gift market through stores worldwide and to the business market via a network of companies specializing in recognition and awards programs. The company reported consolidated sales for 2008 of $160 million. Sales for the writing instrument and accessories segment were $111.9 million.