Click Renaissance Demonstrator with Jowo nib

[S Gokul]

https://youtu.be/IKlVAi3z6g0

 

What would take to make an internationally accepted, high quality nibs in Bharat?

 

Click Pens is launching its Renaissance premium pen with Jowo nib. See YouTube video above, no need to watch fully, you get to see the pen in the first few minutes. 

 

Bharat has been making pens for 80+ years now, there are quite a few brands - KanWrite, Click, Beena etc; who (I think) make their own nibs. So what prevents them from making international quality nibs in their factories? Why do they continue to import Jowo,Schmitt,Boch etc nibs for their pens meant for export?

 

Vandhe Matharam

Jai Shri Ram 

 

 

[hari317]

2 hours ago, S Gokul said:

What would take to make an internationally accepted, high quality nibs in Bharat?

Magna Carta is exporting their inhouse nibs, foreign dealers are carrying their nibs.

[hari317]

2 hours ago, S Gokul said:

KanWrite, Click, Beena etc; who (I think) make their own nibs.

Kanwrite makes tipped nibs. Other two are pen manufacturers sourcing nibs from suppliers.

 

[hari317]

Today there are only 3 players in the nib market in India. Ambitious, Kanpur Writers and Magna Carta. The first two have a wide portfolio, the third one plays in the export "high end" segment.

[A Smug Dill]

4 hours ago, S Gokul said:

What would take to make an internationally accepted, high quality nibs in Bharat?

 

First, you build the industrial capability to make a high quality nib in Bharat.

 

Then, on top of that, you toil over a decade or two aggressively pursuing an incursion into overseas market. Expect to spend three to four times your manufacturing budget on marketing, and run at a commercial loss because of that for the first ten years. First win over the hearts and minds of locals who don't want to spend as much as on an imported product, who may then as in-the-know folk introduce international visitors to the undervalued bargain find; then win over those buying from overseas who have already spent enough on foreign brands, and with that spare money can choose to test out your product out of sheer curiosity instead of need. Wow enough of them, or at least prove to them your product is at least as good for no more than half the asking price of a European competitor's offering. Wait for them to spread the word and convince their friends and acquaintances, all the while keeping on their good side.

 

Simply having a good enough product does not warrant recognition internationally that allows you to compete in the global market. All things (including price) being equal, there would be no rational reason for the (globally) average pen user or manufacturer to prefer Indian, or Chinese, or whatever product that has no prestige and no advantage over European brands with just as long a history in the market.

 

[Aravind_A_2310]

1 hour ago, hari317 said:

Today there are only 3 players in the nib market in India. Ambitious, Kanpur Writers and Magna Carta. The first two have a wide portfolio, the third one plays in the export "high end" segment.

It's just a random doubt I have, but who makes nibs for mohi? Do they make it in house?... I dont see an kanwrite or ambitious branding, and their nibs in my experience have been smoother than kanwrite fines.

[VillersCotterets]

15 hours ago, S Gokul said:

Why do they continue to import Jowo,Schmitt,Boch etc nibs for their pens meant for export?

I agree with your perplexity. It is a mistake but I can explain to you why they might feel the need to do it.

I will only speak for myself, but I don't think I am unique in any way. My buying decisions were typical of Western customers. 

When I was new to Indian pens, not yet convinced of their quality, I was more likely to buy a pen with a nib from a known brand with which I had experience. Because the variations in tipping from continent to continent are so huge, at first it's hard to know what you'll get if you order, say, a nib labelled F. In some cases, the F will be more like what I consider an EF size (i.e. Japanese nibs) and in other cases it will be a B size (i.e. some European nibs). I knew what line size an F corresponded to on a JoWo, so I tended to buy pens with that brand of nib. If Click had contacted me at the time to ask if I would be more likely to buy an Indian pen with a Click nib or a JoWo nib, I would probably have said JoWo. 

That said, if I had not been given the choice, I would have hesitated and ended up buying a Click as is, regardless of the nib brand. Today, without hesitation, I would prefer an stub made by Kanwrite over any JoWo. Ideally, the fountain pen should be sold with two nibs included. This would remove much of the initial reluctance.

What is often overlooked by Indian manufacturers is the promotional material; the quality of the photos, the look of the site, the ease of payment, etc. Most Indian pen companies makes the ugliest photos ever. They should take example on Chinese brands like HongDian. Good presentation is not just for high-end brands, such as MagnaCarta, but a necessity for even the most affordable pens if they are to be exported.



If I had one piece of advice for Click, it would be to hire an international marketing firm, specialised in online retail,  rather than offering JoWo nibs. In the medium term, they would come out ahead.

[Jamerelbe]

In my experience, Kanwrite nibs are international export quality - they just don't have the international *reputation* (yet) of JoWo, Bock or Schmidt.  Add to that the experience may of us have had, of buying pens from India (including my first two Rangas) that sported scratchy, substandard nibs from goodness-knows-where, and unfortunately that colours our perception of *all* nibs made in India. 

 

I suspect that's why companies like Ranga started offering European-made nibs on their pens, for a bit of a price mark-up.  Now that I've bought a few of their pens with Ranga-branded nibs (made by Kanwrite), and discovered how good they are, I've stopped asking for the nib 'upgrade'.

[S Gokul]

Thank you Jamarelbe. Ranga offering pens with KanWrite nibs is good news to people like us looking for slightly cheaper pens, which don't compromise on quality. 

Vandhe Matharam

Jai Shri Ram 

[S Gokul]

5 hours ago, VillersCotterets said:

I agree with your perplexity. It is a mistake but I can explain to you why they might feel the need to do it.

I will only speak for myself, but I don't think I am unique in any way. My buying decisions were typical of Western customers. 

When I was new to Indian pens, not yet convinced of their quality, I was more likely to buy a pen with a nib from a known brand with which I had experience. Because the variations in tipping from continent to continent are so huge, at first it's hard to know what you'll get if you order, say, a nib labelled F. In some cases, the F will be more like what I consider an EF size (i.e. Japanese nibs) and in other cases it will be a B size (i.e. some European nibs). I knew what line size an F corresponded to on a JoWo, so I tended to buy pens with that brand of nib. If Click had contacted me at the time to ask if I would be more likely to buy an Indian pen with a Click nib or a JoWo nib, I would probably have said JoWo. 

That said, if I had not been given the choice, I would have hesitated and ended up buying a Click as is, regardless of the nib brand. Today, without hesitation, I would prefer an stub made by Kanwrite over any JoWo. Ideally, the fountain pen should be sold with two nibs included. This would remove much of the initial reluctance.

What is often overlooked by Indian manufacturers is the promotional material; the quality of the photos, the look of the site, the ease of payment, etc. Most Indian pen companies makes the ugliest photos ever. They should take example on Chinese brands like HongDian. Good presentation is not just for high-end brands, such as MagnaCarta, but a necessity for even the most affordable pens if they are to be exported.



If I had one piece of advice for Click, it would be to hire an international marketing firm, specialised in online retail,  rather than offering JoWo nibs. In the medium term, they would come out ahead.

Thank you. 

 

Yes, sending an extra nib or two with the pen is a good idea, on promotion  - couldn't agree more. They can do much better. 

 

Vandhe Matharam

Jai Shri Ram 

[Mansi]

On 10/20/2022 at 5:52 PM, Aravind_A_2310 said:

It's just a random doubt I have, but who makes nibs for mohi? Do they make it in house?... I dont see an kanwrite or ambitious branding, and their nibs in my experience have been smoother than kanwrite fines.

I agree. I have two pens by Mohi... the Tanishq has an iridium nib and the Beetle is steel. The Tanishq writes like butter, but the Beetle is really amazing too. They are some of my all time favorites to write with.

[S Gokul]

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Edited October 27, 2022 by S Gokul
Delete

[S Gokul]

On 10/24/2022 at 3:12 PM, Mansi said:

I agree. I have two pens by Mohi... the Tanishq has an iridium nib and the Beetle is steel. The Tanishq writes like butter, but the Beetle is really amazing too. They are some of my all time favorites to write with.

Kindly Share Mohi pens WhatsApp number or website link to my email id gokul73@gmail.com. Thank you. 

 

Vandhe Matharam

Jai Shri Ram