Reynolds Pens is an American
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 ...
and a former
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, p ...
manufacturing company of
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, mainly
pen
PEN may refer to:
* (National Ecological Party), former name of the Brazilian political party Patriota (PATRI)
* PEN International, a worldwide association of writers
** English PEN, the founding centre of PEN International
** PEN America, located ...
s. Products commercialized under the Reynolds name include
ballpoint
A ballpoint pen, also known as a biro (British English), ball pen (Hong Kong, Indian, Indonesian, Pakistani, and Philippine English), or dot pen ( Nepali English and South Asian English), is a pen that dispenses ink (usually in paste form) ove ...
,
gel
A gel is a semi-solid that can have properties ranging from soft and weak to hard and tough. Gels are defined as a substantially dilute cross-linked system, which exhibits no flow when in the steady state, although the liquid phase may still d ...
,
rollerball
Rollerball may refer to:
* Rollerball pen, a type of ballpoint pen and ink
* Roller ball (pointing device), a trackball-device invented by Ralph Benjamin
* ''Rollerball'' (1975 film), a science fiction film based on the short story "Rollerball Mu ...
, and
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 ...
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
In June 1945, Chicago businessman
Milton Reynolds
Milton Reynolds (1892–1976), an American entrepreneur, was born Milton Reinsberg in Albert Lea, Minnesota. He is most famously known for the manufacture and introduction of the first ballpoint pen to be sold in the U.S. market in October 1945. ...
was in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
,
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
, when he came across the first commercialized ballpoint, the
Biro pen.
In October 1945, Milton was able to reverse engineer the Biro pen and was the first to manufacture and sell ballpoint pens into the US market. "Reynolds Rocket" pen was introduced at Gimbel’s department store in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, selling $100,000 worth of pens on the first day.
Demand in 1945 was running 30,000 pens per day, making it America's #1 ballpoint pen. However, within three years the price of the pen went from $12.50 to 50¢.
The Reynolds Rocket Pen had a tiny ball bearing that let ink out only when pressed against the item you were writing on. In advertisements Reynolds claimed it had enough ink to last 15 years without refilling.
In 1947, in a publicity stunt to promote Reynolds' pens Milton Reynolds and William Odom announced they would beat Howard Hughes's
round-the-world flight speed record. They set a new record time of under 79 hours by flying the "Reynolds Bombshell" around the world while managing to pass out thousands of pens.
In 1948, Reynolds expanded overseas and opened Reynolds European, and later in 1959 spun out Reynolds European SA as an independent company focused on non-ferrous metals.
The Chicago-based Reynolds Pen Company closed with Milton Reynolds moving to Mexico. The French subsidiary survived as did their
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
n licensee.
[ Later, the French subsidiary would be purchased.
In 2000, Newell Rubbermaid acquired Reynolds Pens France and in 2007, announced they would be closing the French manufacturing plants, causing huge labor union protests.
In May 2016, Reynolds' licensee—GM Pens International—in India decided to end their exclusive contract and stopped making Reynold branded pens, instead choosing to make their own Rorito brand pen.]Newell Brands
Newell Brands Inc. is an American manufacturer, marketer and distributor of consumer and commercial products. The company's brands and products include Rubbermaid storage/or waste disposal containers; home organization and reusable container ...
and are sold in more than 70 countries.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reynolds Pens
Pen manufacturers
Pencil brands