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Writing history
 A
long, long time ago a stationer, an engineer and a salesman struck
up a partnership to combine their expertise in their respective
fields to change the way man wrote. In 1906, when Claus-Johannes
Voss, August Eberstein and Alfred Nehemias got together, they decided
to develop on the newly invented fountain pen that was then growing
hugely popular across the United States and in England. Their innovation
to simplify man’s writing needs would one day fetch them a name,
a brand that would become a benchmark, a peak of excellence and
perfection. Voss saw the potential of a fountain pen with its own
ink container that was independent of an inkwell and so could be
used anywhere. The three entrepreneurs thereafter founded a joint
venture — the pooling of different talents and financial resources
with the aim of undertaking a commercial risk.
 The
three co-founders of the Simplo Filler Pen Company started off by
opening a factory in Schanzen, Hamburg. After three years of developing
the fountain pen, they came out with the Rouge et Noir. Made of
black ebonite with a red cap, the pen was inspired from the novel
of the same name by Stendhal. This pen was marketed as ‘the fountain
pen that does not make blots’. It was a major success for Voss,
Eberstein and Nehemias. A year later, the Montblanc was released,
a technically-improved version of the Rouge et Noir. This was the
first time the name was used.
 A
black fountain pen with a white star on the tip of the cap, the
Montblanc created a strong brand image using the name of the summit
of the highest mountain in Europe. The star, with six ends that
symbolised the six glaciers, which Montblanc is home to, became
the Montblanc registered trademark. The company’s name soon changed
to Montblanc Simplo GmbH, with the first Montblanc outlets opening
in Paris, London and Barcelona, with branches in Berlin, Leipzig,
Breslau, Hanover and Bremen.
 In
1924, Montblanc came out with what was called a ‘global breakthrough’,
with the Meisterstück family of writing instruments. Known
as the head of the Meisterstück (German for ‘masterpiece’)
family, the Meisterstück 149 became a legend in writing instruments.
The nib of every Meisterstück 149 bore the number 4810, the
metric height of the Montblanc summit in the Savoy Alps.
The coveted cult object gained a permanent place in the New York
Museum of Modern Art. By now the company was also manufacturing
writing paper, ink and mechanical pencils, all bearing the star.
In 1935, to reassure reluctant potential customers, recovering from
the depression, Montblanc offered a lifetime guarantee on its writing
instruments, proving their quality. Years and years of this trusted
quality in Montblanc’s traditional craftsmanship followed.
 In
1983, Montblanc launched the Meisterstück Solitaire collection
in metal, with editions in solid gold, sterling and gilded silver.
The most coveted writing instrument in this collection was the Meisterstück
Solitaire Royal valued at approximately USD 1,25,000 and decorated
with 4,810 pavé diamonds (each one individually cut with
35 facets). The Solitaire Royal entered the Guinness Book of World
Records for being the world’s most expensive fountain pen.
The number 4810 goes a step further. Every pen that Montblanc manufactured
was part of a limited edition with just 4810 pieces. Every year,
a limited edition is dedicated to the winner of the Montblanc de
la Culture Arts Patronage Award, which was established in 1992 to
honour patrons of art across 10 countries.
 Today,
Montblanc has moved beyond writing instruments. They have an entire
series of luxury goods, ranging from elegant hand-made leather accessories,
fashion eyewear, exquisite silver jewellery and fine Swiss watches.
The watches are produced by Montblanc’s own watch company Montblanc
Montre SA in Le Locle, inaugurated in 1997. The leather goods, on
the other hand, are manufactured by Montblanc Leather GmbH, the
outcome of Montblanc’s acquisition of Karl Seeger Lederwarenfabrik
GmbH in 1992.
The year 1998 saw the first exhibition of art at the Montblanc
Gallery at Hamburg, with the establishment of the Montblanc Academy.
Montblanc’s flagship boutiques have been known to be the epitome
of excellence in the entire range of products that they manufacture.
The first boutique opened in New York in 1999, with Staircase Gallery
and Studio privé. The latest one opened at the Champs-Elysées
in Paris in 2002. A 100 years after the Simplo Filler Pen Company
was started, today, Montblanc has 260 boutiques and over 9,000 sales
outlets in 70 countries around the world.
 Cut
to perfection
On the occasion of the centenary celebrations, Montblanc launched
a special Anniversary Edition with a diamond, which is called the
Montblanc Cut. The diamond has taken eight years of development
to attain the desired perfection, in carats, colour, clarity and
cut. The cut is in the shape of the Montblanc star and refers to
the six streams of the glacier on the summit of the Savoy Alps peak.
With the cut patented by the company, it makes Montblanc the first
brand in the world to possess a diamond cut derived from its logo.
The pen still maintains the star shape at the centre of the nib,
with Montblanc engraved in white italicised capitals on the body.
The diamond appears at the peak of the pen. The edition still possesses
all the qualitative advantages of modern-writing instruments. Manufactured
worldwide are 15,000 fountain-pens, 30,000 roller ball pens, 45,000
ballpoint pens and 10,000 mechanical pencils. Montblanc has also
created 10,000 anniversary boxes to go with the edition.
In every venture that Montblanc has entered, their standard values
of quality and uncompromised attention to detail has maintained
their position as a brand that lives upto their commitment of consistent
perfection, upholding their motto, ‘High Touch’!
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