Then, on the other hand, there was a wealthy mixture of names associated to these pens. Nikko Ebonite is the name of the mother company; then there was the name Eboya for its online shop. Finally, Nebotek was the pen brand.
All this changed when around January 2014 the company decided, first, to forget about the name Nebotek; and, second, to sign the pens. These pens are now named Eboya, with the lemma “Made in Tokyo” under it, as can be seen on the photography accompanying this text.
The newly branded Eboya, previously called, but unsigned, Nebotek.
Eboya’s marketing problems do not finish here. Eboya pens lack visibility in the market, and they rely solely on their website, which is only written in Japanese. This also might be changing. To start, Eboya pens are now going to be distributed in the US –and beyond— through John Mottishaw’s website Nibs.com. In fact, the first fifteen Eboya pens have just been shipped to the US, according to Eboya nibmeister Kanesaki.
Nikko Ebonite is a small company, and Eboya pens are in essence the product of one man alone, Mr. Noritoshi Kanesaki. Their limited resources might be at the bottom of their precarious marketing, but they could do better as many other small operations in the world of fountain pens are showing.
Pilot Custom 912, music nib – Sailor Yama-dori
Bruno Taut
Nakano, February 25th, 2014
etiquetas: Eboya, Nebotek, mercado, Kanesaki Noritoshi
Bruno Taut
Nakano, February 25th, 2014
etiquetas: Eboya, Nebotek, mercado, Kanesaki Noritoshi
5 comments:
Nice write-up about Eboya pens. I have a nice large swirled ebonite eyedropper. It's really well made and the only reservation I had was the nib. That being said the large stub Bock nib writes really well. I think the move with US distribution makes good sense Best of luck to them.
Would like to know what add-ons these pens provide to the most than pretty well provided japanese market... look nice
Thank you both for passing by and commenting.
Eboya does indeed deserve a wider share of the market attending to their quality. Now they have to be wise on how to advertise themselves.
Eboya pens, Captain Haddock, are right now the only ones in Japan making pens in non-decorated ebonite. And they are also the cheapest alternative if you wanted a Japanese eyedropper. And the only maker in Japan, at least, making button fillers.
Las comparaciones son odiosas, pero yo veo a Eboya como una suerte de RomilloPens japonesas. Pero más baratas sin ser realmente baratas.
Thank for passing by and commenting.
BT
Bruno,
Are there likely to be any pen shops in Japan that might have eboya pens? I am looking for one of the button fillers.
Matt
Matt,
Eboya does not make any button filler anymore. Sad, but such is the case.
The safe bet to buy Eboya in Japan is to go to their shop in Arakawa (1-38-5 Arakawa, Arakawa-ku, 03-3891-5258), but their opening hours are limited.
Now, Eboya guys often attend sales events at different locations --stationers and deparment stores-- in Japan where you could deal with them directly without having to go to Arakawa.
Finally, there are three companies --as of now-- selling Eboya pens outside of Japan.
It all depends on your location and on your schedules.
Hope this helps,
BT
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