On occasion, tidbits of information will trickle out of Germany, each one not really worthy of a dedicated post of its own, but the aggregate sometimes makes for interesting reading. Obviously, we are all still processing the news regarding Pelikan International Corporation Berhad’s sale of their core stationery business and are anxiously waiting to see what the new French caretakers of the brand will do with our beloved fine writing instruments. Personally, I feel like we are engrossed in some kind of action movie, apprehensive about what kind of fate might befall our beloved hero. We will simply have to be patient and wait to see what happens, but I would caution everyone to try and maintain a neutral stance until more information comes to light. To that end, I will tell you that I have reached out to the Hamelin Group for comment on the situation. While I don’t expect much in return, I will continue to pursue any leads that I find and report back to you. Since there is not much more to report on that front at the moment, here are a few tidbits to tide you over in the meantime.

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The Peine 800 Years Anniversary Pen

Peine [ˈpaɪ̯nə] is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany situated on the river Fuhse and the Mittelland Canal, approximately 25 miles east of Hannover. The settlement of Peine was founded in the early 13th century, gaining town privileges in 1223. Vöhrum was founded sometime around 1022 and is the largest town within the district of Peine with approximately 7,000 inhabitants. Pelikan moved their factory from Hannover to Vöhrum in 1973 where it has remained ever since. While Vöhrum celebrated its 1,000th anniversary last year, Peine itself turns a sprightly 800 this year. To commemorate the occasion, Pelikan has released a specially engraved model, the existence of which is little known outside of Lower Saxony. Pelikan took their silver and black P457 Twist cartridge fountain pen with medium nib and their R457 Twist rollerball and engraved the event’s anniversary logo onto the cap. Only 150 of each were made and they are only available for purchase at the Peine Tourist Information center for a price of 15 euros (~$16.37) each. It is unclear if any remain available at this time but if you happen to be in Peine, you can stop by Tourist Information Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

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Pelikan Host A Poster Competition For Its 185th Anniversary

Pelikan is hosting Plakatwettbewerb 2023, a poster competition which harkens back to the late 1800s and early 1900s when Pelikan would regularly host such events. The competitions drew artists from all over, including some very famous talent, amongst whom several went on to have their designs purchased for use in Pelikan’s advertising, creating many of the iconic posters that we know today. Personal favorites include works from César Klein (1919), Rudi Rother (1903), Siegmund von Suchodolski (1909), E. Knauf and B. Machow (1909), and Glanco Cambon (1909). The book Pelikan: The Brand by Detmar Schäfer does a wonderful job showing these works in some of the best detail that you can find anywhere. Pelikan is once again calling for advertising posters in order to “promote creativity and make everyday life more colorful.” The provided prompt for such creativity is; “What connects you with the Pelikan brand?” The work must integrate a pelican bird and/or the word “Pelikan.” All colors, types, and techniques of creative design are allowed, and the minimum format of the poster is DIN A4. Artists compete either in the adult category or the children/adolescents (ages 12-17). Cash prizes are awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in each category with the winners also receiving an M200 fountain pen and a bottle of Edelstein ink. The victors will also have the honor of having their work displayed in the TintenTurm. The competition began on April 28th and the entry deadline is August 31, 2023. The official page with all of the details can be found here.

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Plans For A Land Exchange Scrapped

How are locals reacting to news of the brand being sold? Politicians who spoke to the local paper on the condition of anonymity struck a more cautious tone, indicating that a change of ownership did not automatically spell an end to the company or its local facilities. Obviously, however, the previously proposed land exchange now seems to be off the table, at least for the time being. The property initially put forward now looks like it will but used for a natural gas pipeline. The city council remains very committed to keeping the 240 factory jobs that Pelikan provides in that area so I’m sure that they are just as apprehensive as us about what may come next. It is also unclear what will come of the plans for a land sale to the Hillwood Group or for the factory in Vöhrum itself, but I would suspect such a major transaction would be placed on hold pending evaluation by the new owners. Local references with the latest news can be found here and here.

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Pelikan Teases Future Releases

I normally wouldn’t broach this because I would have taken it for granted a few months ago but, in light of the current state of affairs, it’s likely worth mentioning, particularly since many people have questioned whether or not we’ll see continued product releases from Pelikan. If you don’t already know, Appelboom, a well-known pen retailer based out of The Netherlands, has been hosting a podcast on YouTube called Appelboom Bites. On episode #34 from June 29th, host Joost Appelboom and co-host Douglas Rathbun interviewed Jana Jegella, Pelikan’s global product manager. In the course of that interview, the topic of future releases was addressed and while Pelikan holds news of upcoming products very close to the vest, Jana was able to provide some reason for optimism. For starters, yes, the Pelikan Hubs event is proceeding as planned with 226 cities registered to participate worldwide. Jana was also queried about a potential Rose Quartz M200 and, while she was understandably coy, she did not outright deny an intent to release such a model. Finally, it appears that a new Edelstein Ink Of The Year to follow this year’s Rose Quartz is in the works. Sadly, Jana gives a much less satisfying answer behind why they changed the barrels of the Souverän from translucent to opaque, thereby reducing the practicality of future models. She related that the change was perpetrated to bring the fountain pen’s design in line with their rollerball/ballpoint models. While I fully suspect that is not the whole story, all I can say to that is shame on them for disregarding 92 years of heritage and tradition for the sake of conformity.

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