Paper Mate is a division of Sanford L.P., a Newell Brands company that produces

writing instrument 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. Paper Mate's offices are located in Oak Brook, Illinois, along with those of Newell Rubbermaid's other office products divisions. Its product line includes ballpoint and gel pens, mechanical pencils and wooden

pencils A pencil () is a writing or drawing implement with a solid pigment core in a protective casing that reduces the risk of core breakage and keeps it from marking the user's hand. Pencils create marks by physical abrasion (mechanical), abrasi ...

, erasers, and correction fluids.

History

Early in 1941, Patrick J. Frawley acquired his first company, a ballpoint pen parts manufacturer that had defaulted on its loan. In 1949, The Frawley Pen Company developed an ink that dried instantly. The pen that delivered this ink was called "The Paper Mate". In 1951, Frawley sold 4 million pens and had 22 salesmen visit 2,400 stores within six weeks to advertise the ballpoint pen product by testing the ink on retailers' shirts, promising a new $15 shirt if the ink was not able to come off. In 1955, the Frawley Pen Company was acquired by The Gillette Company, Inc. for $15.5 million, and formed the basis for the Paper Mate Division of Gillette. Twenty-five years later, in 1980, Gillette acquired Liquid Paper and Waterman; with these acquisitions, the Paper Mate Division was changed to the Stationery Products Group. In 1984, a Paper Mate Sharpwriter was featured in the music video for "Turn Up the Radio" by Autograph. In late 2000, Gillette's stationery products division was purchased by Newell Rubbermaid and merged with Newell Rubbermaid's Sanford Brands division. As an employee of Paper Mate, Norman Holtzman designed the double heart logo over 50 years ago, and it is still the Paper Mate identity in 2024.

Products

Paper Mate products are offered in a variety of colors and shapes. In 1966, the Flair pen was released. The marker is a felt-tipped pen with quick–drying water–based ink. In 1979, Paper Mate introduced the Eraser Mate or '' Erasermate'' brand. In the 1980s, Paper Mate invented the ''Replay 2000'' pen, with erasable ink and a rubber at one end. In 2010, Paper Mate introduced "environmentally friendly"

biodegradable Biodegradation is the breakdown of organic matter by microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi. It is generally assumed to be a natural process, which differentiates it from composting. Composting is a human-driven process in which biodegrada ...

pens,

and erasers. In 2012, Paper Mate introduced the brand ''InkJoy''. In 2017, Paper Mate introduced the ''Clearpoint Color Lead'' ''Mechanical pencil'' series.

References

External links

*
The Gillette Company
at Encyclopedia.com: Paper Mate as part of Gillette (1955 to 2000) {{Newell Brands Newell Brands Stationery Pen manufacturers Pencil brands American companies established in 1940 Manufacturing companies established in 1940 2000 mergers and acquisitions