u/Y799

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Hi. I’m Daniel, and I’ve been collecting not just mechanical pencils but stationery in general for the past 6 years or so. This hobby has become a great part of me and I can more than certainly say I know more about pencils than, at least the average user. So, with my past experience and knowledge, I’m trying to say what I most wish & expect in the modern pen/pencil industry.

Firstly, Customization & Modularity. The human’s will to express one’s thoughts using a tangible medium has been with us ever since we started using tools. Yet before our writing instruments were produced in great numbers and also distributed to the masses, they were limited only to certain people or occupations and thus, it was not that hard to meet their requirements. Now, manufacturers shouldn’t limit their pencils to a certain concept, and only so many pencils can be made that can perfectly satisfy the user’s needs. Customizable Multi-pens such as the Uni Style Fit and Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto are spectacular in this aspect, and I hope in the near future we’d be able to customize even more, such as the grip section, body material, sleeves and much more, especially mechanical pencils as these characteristics heavily contribute to the general writing experience.

Second, Environment-Friendly. Indeed, the stationery industry takes up a much smaller portion than Transportation & Electricity do in our gross pollution, yet we still need to look back at how much materials we could be wasting through our pens. We could create our products in a sustainable way or reuse our waste. The Pilot Legno reuses wooden scraps left from making baseball bats and Kitaboshi gives once useless sawdust another purpose. We all know it’s hard to change our life for the ecosystem, but these companies harm little of both the planet and our everyday life. How about we care about our valuable earth step by step, and in the palm of our hands?

Third and lastly, Incorporating Technology. As we are slowly being surrounded with more and more advanced technology, even what we are holding is changing its ways. From a simple stylus to the Apple Pencil and Samsung S Pen, these digital equipment are changing how we write, and the stationery manufacturers need to change as well, by incorporating modern tech into our pencils and making it a tool for both analogue and digital. Rotring 800+ and Kutsuwa Touch Pen Sharp can function both as a pencil and stylus, being one of the very few semi-digital tools. This way, this industry will retain most of its competence, and even against the emerging digital pen market.

No opinion can be 100% factual, and so can’t mine. These are what I’d value most, but if you have different thoughts, feel free to comment. We needed this discourse and I guess I’ll be the catalyst.