First, it was the deluge of use-and-throw ballpoint pens. Then came the digital devices that shook the very foundations of handwriting. And now with AI, the world of fountain pens, inks, and writing is facing a threat that is nothing short of existential. This, when the industry was just about cobbling a response to the challenge thrown in by plastic pens, clutching at the proverbial straw of sustainability.
The writing on the wall is clear – AI domination will make even the little hand-writing that is resorted to these days largely redundant. And such a scenario is closer than we are ready to comprehend. Will fountain pens be dead then? Not really, and I say this knowing that I am oversimplifying a complex issue, they will increasingly become restricted to a niche patronised by serious hobbyists, used more as an accessory by the fanciful, than as an instrument of daily use by the masses. Unless, of course, drastic measures are immediately put into place.
That said, let us now take a quick look at the major threats faced by the industry:
Chinese dumping. The lower end of the market is already saturated with Chinese imports, where cartridge pens are being imported in bulk by major players in the stationery segment, which is aided by their distribution muscle. And here we are, not even considering the sale of Chinese pens in the unorganised sector. While some small players are still fighting on, it is an unequal battle, and the results can easily be predicted. While there are Chinese products, arguably superior to locally made ones, that are already in the mid and upper segments of the market, it is anticipated that their supply will increase with time, leading to obvious fallouts.
No industry body. Strange as it is, the fountain and ink manufacturers in India do not have a pan-India body to represent them. At least, not that I am aware of. Thus, issues like GST, the lack of training institutes, access to finance, and a whole number of related matters go unattended. Industry figures are near impossible to come by, and there is no way of ascertaining claims like Chinese pens already outselling Indian ones in some popular categories.
Problem of size and resources. Most players are small and scattered, except players like Click and Kanwrite. These small players again, are mostly assemblers who source the different parts from third parties. They face a perpetual resource crunch and naturally lack a long-term vision, preferring to live from one day to the next, cobbling to survive. Some are single-owner or family-run operations with no succession plans, which is another peculiar problem that plagues the industry. The next generation refuses to be enthused enough to take up the gauntlet, not that the industry has much to offer, still. Again, the earlier downturn had not only ensured that most manufacturers go out of business, but also had led to the collapse of traditional distribution channels. Setting up these channels now, from the scratch, is virtually impossible for any one standalone manufacturer.
No R & D. Over the last decade or so, the one pen that has emerged at the top of user preference in India is the one that is turned out of resin, comes fitted with a standard imported nib-feed system, and an imported converter. They have become so homogeneous across producers that it is hardly possible to differentiate. This has become the trend as everyone wants to take the path of least resistance to produce eye-candies and maximise returns. R & D in the industry is almost non-existent, with nobody able to point out a new offering from India that incorporates new thinking as opposed to mere juggad.
This is not to say that nothing is happening in the Indian Industry, perish the thought. All that I am saying is that the steps that are being taken in terms of R & D are few and far between, not enough in terms of the sheer size of the industry and the volume of business it generates.
Branding is another area where we are abysmal laggards. Just posting a few inane and mostly unrelated claims on social media is not enough – but who will explain this to the manufacturers? The common excuse that they put forward is that of a lack of resources– but if you work out the costing, be that of pen or ink, you will be surprised just how steep the margins really are. Yet, they crib.
Pricing paradox, The lower and middle ends of the market face a tremendous amount of challenge from the Chinese, while in the top end, the inevitable comparison comes with European or Japanese pens. As we have not really bothered to create brands, we are naturally at a disadvantage. And here mention must be made of a strange phenomenon. In the new millennium when the internet had opened up the market, our manufacturers, who were then in the doldrums, had suddenly realised that killings could be made by peddling the exotic Indian ebonites overseas. They exported, raked in the moolah, and did nothing to scale up their offerings. The fallout of this is a peculiar mentality wherein prices are fixed based more on the ability of the buyer to pay, often ignoring the quality and other characteristics, read merit, of the product. Pricing, thus is an area of concern, and leaves a lot to be desired.
Another point that needs to be mentioned here is that there is a substantial segment in the middle of the market where Indian pen makers are not very active. They will do better to address this gap as there is potential here, waiting to be trapped.
E Commerce. Our industry also needs to get its act together in terms of making the transition into the e-commerce space. While forays have been made, still much more needs to be done in terms of offering a smooth and hassle-free experience to the buyers. The industry must remember that the pandemic is over, and they don’t have a captive market no more. Net based business models have their own idiosyncrasies and call for a different box of skill sets which must be nurtured, against which I see substantial mental blocks hindering growth. And before I end, quality standardisation is something that must be built into the system as opposed to being something to which only lip service is paid.