Itoya 2012

Itoya is one of the big stationery shops in Tokyo. Its two buildings in Ginza are a Mecca for any lover of stationery goods, including fountain pens, visiting this city.

Itoya's building in 1909

Itoya has recently –opening this past October 3rd—reorganized its sections. Fountain pens are now located on the backstreet building, named K. Itoya 1904 after the foundation of the company in 1904 by Katsutaro Ito, and occupies the first two floors. On the ground floor we see the Montblanc counter, always separated from the rest of pens by imposition of the company, and most pens in price ranges medium and low. The second floor is dedicated to maki-e and urushi fountain pens and to the technical service.

The K.Itoya 1904 building is clearly marked as the fountain pen building, although only two of the seven floors are in fact devoted to these tools.

View of the second floor, dedicated mostly to fountain pens decorated in maki-e and urushi.

This investment in the new organization and this larger space dedicated to sophisticated pens can only mean that the profits derived from upscale writing tools in increasing in the total balance of the company. And foreign visitors might have played an important role in this as there is now a native English-speaker salesman.

Pilot E, manifold nib – Pilot blue-black

Bruno Taut
Shinjuku, October 12th, 2012
Etiquetas: Tokyo, mercado, Japón, papelería, Itoya