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Why did Waterman stop making and selling Phileas pens? The pens are handsome and write surprisingly well. Many people report buying new ones less than 10 years ago for about $20.00 US. Waterman was apparently earning a profit at that price or they could not have sold them. So, why DID Waterman stop making them? I'm not asking for conjecture here, since that could go on forever. I am respectfully asking if anyone actually knows the real reason. I have heard this from a fairly plausible source. THE SOURCE: A Staples store employee who informed me I could not replace my broken Phileas because Waterman no longer made them. (That painful moment is seared into my memory, but I won't digress). Here is the explanation he offered: "All school children in France were once required to use fountain pens in class. However, that practice was recently discontinued. Faced with the loss of so many guaranteed buyers, Waterman could no longer make money from the relatively few people who still buy and use economy-priced fountain pens." The empty Staples shelves confirmed that my chance to purchase a brand new Phileas pen in-store had passed. In desperation, I asked the employee to go into the back room just to make sure there wasn't an unsold stash. He looked at me with pity and said my only hope was to check eBay. Online, I found "new old stock" pens selling for three figures. I see the colorful new Kulturs selling for increasingly high prices. They certainly look "young" compared to the dense colors and gold-accents of the Art Deco Phileas. But I can't believe the Phileas costs THAT much more to produce and sell. The resale market for them seems to be brisk. So I invite you to share any facts you have concerning Waterman's decision to axe the Phileas. Respectfully — TwelveDrawings.com