Kaweco
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Kaweco is a German
brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...
of
writing implement A writing implement or writing instrument is an object used to produce writing. Writing consists of different figures, lines, and or forms. Most of these items can be also used for other functions such as painting, drawing and technical drawing, ...
s, originally introduced by the Heidelberg Pen Company for its
dip pen A dip pen is a writing instrument used to apply ink to paper. It usually consists of a metal nib (pen), nib with a central slit that acts as a capillary action, capillary channel like those of fountain pen nibs, mounted in a handle or holder, ofte ...
s line in 1889. Kaweco became a
public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is a limited liability co ...
in 1921, then being taken over by the Knust Woringen and Grube company (KWG), after Kaweco went bankrupt in 1930.KWG
on Fountainpen.it
In 1994, Gutberlet
GmbH (; ) is a type of Juridical person, legal entity in German-speaking countries. It is equivalent to a (Sàrl) in the Romandy, French-speaking region of Switzerland and to a (Sagl) in the Ticino, Italian-speaking region of Switzerland. It is a ...
, a
cosmetics Cosmetics are substances that are intended for application to the body for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance. They are mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either Natural product, natural source ...
company based in
Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...
, acquired the rights to the "Kaweco" name. The core business is the production and distribution of writing instruments and accessories. Current products under the Kaweco brand include
fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" ( genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were o ...
, rollerball,
digital Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits. Businesses *Digital bank, a form of financial institution *Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) or Digital, a computer company *Digital Research (DR or DRI), a software ...
and dip pens, and
mechanical pencil A mechanical pencil or clutch pencil is a pencil with a replaceable and mechanically extendable solid pigment core called a "lead" . The pencil lead, lead, often made of graphite, is not bonded to the outer casing, and the user can mechanically e ...
s.


History

The Kaweco brand originated in 1883, when the "Heidelberger Federhalter Fabrik" ("Heidelberg Dip Pen Factory") was founded by Luce and Enßlen in
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
.History
on Kaweco website
Wooden
dip pen A dip pen is a writing instrument used to apply ink to paper. It usually consists of a metal nib (pen), nib with a central slit that acts as a capillary action, capillary channel like those of fountain pen nibs, mounted in a handle or holder, ofte ...
s and
fountain pen A fountain pen is a writing instrument that uses a metal nib (pen), nib to apply Fountain pen ink, water-based ink, or special pigment ink—suitable for fountain pens—to paper. It is distinguished from earlier dip pens by using an internal r ...
s were produced, with gold nibs manufactured by A. Morton & Co. were imported from
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
. Heinrich Koch and Rudolph Weber took over the dip pen factory in 1889 and set-up a new production facility in Handschuhsheim, right outside of
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
. The products were marked with the brand names Perkeo, Omega, and Kaweco and were stamped with the initials HF, which stands for Heidelberger Federhalterfabrik (Heidelberg dip pen factory). Shortly after, the brand name Kaweco became the company name under which the products are still distributed today. In 1909, the first Kaweco safety fountain pen was produced. Due to high demand, the distribution of Kaweco writing instruments expanded. Kaweco opened
subsidiaries A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidiary company. Unl ...
in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
,
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
,
Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
and
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
, as well as agencies in other countries worldwide. A 1911 catalog shows a wide range of fountain pens and filling systems, and pocket fountain pen for ladies, officers, and sportsmen. It is the first year of production for the Kaweco Sport. In 1914 Kaweco assumed control over the former parts provider A. Morton & Co., which at the time was the oldest gold nib factory in New York. These assets and equipment were moved to Heidelberg and the production of Kaweco's own gold nibs began. In 1921 Kaweco was reorganized as a PLC (
public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is a limited liability co ...
). Kaweco had an approximate annual production of 130,000 fountain pens and employed 600 people. Lever fountain pens were added to the production. In 1929 fountain pen factory Knust, Woringen & Grube from Wiesloch (Aurumia brand) purchased the Kaweco company name, machines, stock, and
patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...
s. Friedrich Grube would lead the company for the next 30 years. In this year the "KA WE CO"
Logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name that it represents, as in ...
, which is divided into three parts, was developed. This logo is still used today and can be found as a branding on many different products. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, a lack of raw materials and manpower nearly led to a complete production shut down. On 30 October 1945, several months after the end of the war, the county commissioner gave permission for Kaweco to resume business. On 5 May 1960, Friedrich Grube Sr. died at the age of 63. His son Wilhelm took over the company. Under Wilhelm Grube's leadership the design of the product range was modernized to look slimmer and streamlined. In 1971, Kaweco launched the Sport set, which included a special jewellery pendant, as a licensed writing instrument of the 20th Olympic Games in Munich. Large companies valued the Kaweco Sport as an promotional item. In 1994,
cosmetics Cosmetics are substances that are intended for application to the body for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance. They are mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either Natural product, natural source ...
company Gutberlet
GmbH (; ) is a type of Juridical person, legal entity in German-speaking countries. It is equivalent to a (Sàrl) in the Romandy, French-speaking region of Switzerland and to a (Sagl) in the Ticino, Italian-speaking region of Switzerland. It is a ...
, based in
Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...
, registered the rights to the Kaweco name and brand. A new ''Sport series'', inspired by the design of 1935, was launched. Pocket writing instruments were introduced to the market as fountain pens,
rollerball pen Roller ball pens or roll pens are pens which use ball-point writing mechanisms with water-based liquid or Gel pen, gelled ink, as opposed to the oil-based viscosity, viscous inks found in ballpoint pens. These less viscous inks, which tend to sa ...
s, ball pens,
mechanical pencil A mechanical pencil or clutch pencil is a pencil with a replaceable and mechanically extendable solid pigment core called a "lead" . The pencil lead, lead, often made of graphite, is not bonded to the outer casing, and the user can mechanically e ...
s and
clutch pencil A mechanical pencil or clutch pencil is a pencil with a replaceable and mechanically extendable solid pigment core called a "lead" . The lead, often made of graphite, is not bonded to the outer casing, and the user can mechanically extend it as i ...
s. The company Diplomat became the worldwide exclusive sales partner with Kaweco, however in 1999 Diplomat was taken over by Herlitz, ending this partnership. Since then, Kaweco has been increasing its worldwide distribution independently, working closely with domestic partners. Today Kaweco products are available in more than 50 countries.


Company

The brand's history and the nostalgic, retro design of its products are combined with more modern technology. Besides the core business, Kaweco markets several co-brandings. Individual pen designs are created in cooperation with partners such as
Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...
,
NOMOS Glashütte NOMOS Glashütte is a economy of Germany, German watchmaking company based in Glashütte, Saxony, specializing in artisan manual-winding and automatic mechanical watches. It was founded by Roland Schwertner in January 1990, two months after the ...
, Oris., and others.


In Popular Culture

In Bergman Island (2021), the character of Chris (
Vicky Krieps Vicky Krieps (born 4 October 1983) is a Luxembourgish-German actress. She has appeared in a number of American, Luxembourgish, French, and German productions. Her breakout role was in the London-based period film ''Phantom Thread'' (2017), direct ...
) is shown using a Kaweco Sport pen.


Bibliography

*Timo Teufert: ''Der Federhalter schrieb in Heidelberg Geschichte.'' In: ''Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung.'' 16. Dezember 2008. *Andreas Lambrou, Stefan Wallrafen: ''Füllfederhalter - Ein Überblick über die Entstehungsgeschichte und die wichtigsten internationalen Marken.'' Heyne-Verlag, München 1992, . *Gerhard Brandl, Michael Gutberlet: Kaweco - Gutberlet crossing Kaweco. verlag Regionalkultur, Ubstadt-Weiher, 2017. *Andreas Lambrou: Fountain Pens of the world. Classic Pens Ltd., Epping, 1995. *Andreas Lambrou: Fountain Pens - Vintage and modern. Classic Pens Ltd., Epping, 1989. *Michael Gutberlet: Kaweco: ein Stück Geschichte aus der (Schreibgeräte-) Industrie - Sonderanfertigungen 1924 - 1928. Nürnberg, 2016. *Thomas Neureither: Seit 100 Jahren - Füllhalter aus Handschuhsheim. Heidelberg, 1997.


References


External links

* {{Art materials brands German brands Fountain pen and ink manufacturers German companies established in 1883 Companies based in Heidelberg Manufacturing companies established in 1883