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Little-Known Episodes prior to PILOT’s Foundation
Seafaring Friendship Gave Rise to Domestically-Produced Fountain Pen
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PILOT’s founders, Ryosuke Namiki and Masao Wada, were both graduates of the Tokyo University of Mercantile Marine, which later became the Tokyo University of Marine Science of Technology. They encountered each other when Wada served on board the Ariake Maru, a merchant ship on which Namiki was the chief engineer. Having established a rapport through the shared experience of life at sea for six months and together spoken enthusiastically about a dream of a future in which some day they would like to create something Japanese that the world would be proud to use, the two men formed a firm friendship from that time onwards.
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Trademarks
Thinking behind PILOT and Lifebuoy Logo
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Namiki Manufacturing Co., Ltd., the predecessor of the Pilot Corporation, was founded on 27th January, 1918. The company trademarks were the ‘Pilot’ brand and a ‘lifebuoy’ logo.
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LACCANAITE Patent
Maki-E Fountain Pens Result from Improvement in Fountain Pen Quality
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In the early 1900s, a sulfur and rubber compound called ebonite was commonly used as the material for making fountain pen barrels.
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The Dunhill-Namiki
All-Conquering Maki-E Fountain Pen
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Armed with their fountain pens, founders Ryosuke Namiki and Masao Wada set off for Europe and the United States.
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Kokkokai
Gonroku Matsuda andMaki-E Artists’ Group
It was 1926 when the highest authority on maki-e, who was later awarded the title of living national treasure, Gonroku Matsuda (1896–1986) was invited to what is now PILOT. In 1931, he brought together a group of more than 65 artists from within and outside the company and organized a group of maki-e masters to research, develop and improve the quality of maki-e fountain pens and to promote mutual friendship between them.
イリドスミン
源鉱石採取と純国産金ペン誕生
coming soon