A New Chapter – From Pens to Inks

Hello Everyone!

I have some exciting and maybe bittersweet news to announce. Pennonia is going downsize and refocus.

Why are you doing it?

As you may know the original plan was to have a fountain pen web shop purely as an extension of my hobby with the hopes of one day becoming a community favorite place where I can provide great service, useful information and most importantly magnificent pens and inks to everyone.

A part of that plan and dream was to also offer something that nobody else can offer. Beautiful and interesting, 100% handmade inks by yours truly.

Things have developed in a way I wouldn’t have imagined back in 2018 when I launched the shop. I now know that I want to be an ink maker more than I want to be a fountain pen web shop owner. The web shop has continued to develop beautifully in these two years and it somewhat pains me to stop it but I know I need to focus on my inks instead.

The pen shop part of Pennonia has tied up in its stock a substantial amount of my resources which would be enough to purchase even the most fanciest of dyes and equip my laboratory with more efficient equipment.

The other issue I was facing is the lack of free time. Pennonia is still a one-man outfit (with some help from my mum 💖) and I need to be the manager, camera man, photo editor, graphics designer, social media guy, writer, web shop manager and ink maker all next to a full-time day job.

It was stretching me thin and I couldn’t dedicate the amount of time I wanted to for my inks.

I even pulled in a favor and have asked a friend to help out with some articles for the blog.

What will change?

At first the homepage. You can already see that it has changed. It’s going to be about the inks from now on. It’s going to have a section to find your local retailers and distributors who sell Pennonia inks.

For the time being I won’t completely cease the sale of pens, inks and paper products but most brands will be taken down and those that remain will be relegated into one menu point.

The things that will remain: Fountain Pen Section

  • Pelikan M600, M800 and M1000 series
  • Platinum 3776 Century series
  • Namiki

Everything else will be removed and effectively won’t be sold. All of the above mentioned pen series will only be available on backorder only. The reason why I will not completely stop sales is simple: I’m a fountain pen enthusiast, I love pens and these are my personal favorites. Every time I use one of my Pelikans or Platinums they bring me joy and I want to be able to offer these pens and experiences to others too.

The things that will remain: Bottled Ink Section

  • Edelstein (Pelikan)
  • Iroshizuku (Pilot)

The things that will remain: Paper Section

  • Endless Recorder Dot Grids
  • Maruman Croquis

When will it happen?

It has already started but it’s going to be a slower process. I will be fine-tuning the homepage during the upcoming weeks but over 350 products are already removed and I’ll get all the remaining ones eventually too. There also needs to be a lot of behind the scenes cleaning.

Closure

I guess there’s not much else to say. One chapter ends but a new one starts. I’m a bit sad that the pen shop part had to be reduced but on the other hand I’m excited to finally go full steam ahead and put everything into ink making.

It’s going to be exciting to see how things will develop from here on out. Wish me luck! 🤞


Comments

2 responses to “A New Chapter – From Pens to Inks”

  1. carlosgj94 Avatar
    carlosgj94

    Pretty please, dry inks for lefties (L)

    1. Máté Avatar
      Máté

      Oh I’ll definitely consider this next time I’ll come up with new colors. Maybe a quick dry series for lefties? I might even convert some of the old colors.

      I’m right handed so it never really crossed my mind that lefties have to deal with this problem. I have one lefty friend but he’s an underwriter so I guess drying time isn’t an issue for him.

      I’ve already improved dry times based on feedback actually. If you have the chance to try out Hupikék then give it a go. It’s also water resistant so humidity from the hand shouldn’t smear it.

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