On November 16, fans of writing instruments, inks, and special papers will celebrate together again.
Organizing interviews during the summer holidays is not an easy task... The two organizers of the II. Hungary Pen Show: Máté Bikfalvi and Sándor Pető also set a challenge: we coordinated the dates for weeks until the long-awaited meeting finally took place in the July heat.
Csaba: I'm glad to see you all again! We haven't met that often this year...
Sándor: This year has been busy, with a professional exhibition or fair almost every other weekend. We didn't just appear as exhibitors at home: we also participated in the pen shows in Utrecht and Katowice. We gained a lot of experiences and, of course, many insights.
Cs: Could you tell us a bit more about this? How does a foreign pen show differ from a domestic one?
Máté: Abroad, this type of event has a longer tradition, and of course, the collector community is much larger. It's not uncommon for these events to have a history of 20 years. An important experience is that some of the exhibitors are regular participants at pen shows: they travel from country to country and try to showcase themselves as widely as possible. Last year, we were still newcomers, trying to observe who does what and how. Fortunately, we didn't encounter any cliques: this is a profession where people are quickly accepted.
Sándor: …it was also an important experience for me that customers are price-sensitive even in the Netherlands. They consider carefully what they spend money on.
Csaba: However, handcrafted fountain pens are not cheap anywhere...
Sándor: Indeed, that's why customers rarely make purely emotional decisions. Those who buy often return, handle, try out, and get familiar with the chosen writing instrument. This is where the significance of recognition comes in, as an unknown exhibitor must also earn trust. Then, when they meet us and our products for the third or fourth time, we won't be strangers anymore.
Csaba: Did you have time to get to know the other exhibitors?
Máté: Of course, it was also an important goal to promote the Hungary Pen Show. We are very pleased that we managed to attract new exhibitors to Budapest. Among them will be pen makers: Bragowood is coming from Croatia, and Daphne Pen from Turkey. The uni (Mitsubishi Pencil) team will also bring markers and special inks to the event.
Csaba: What about the Hungarian exhibitors? Will there be familiar faces?
Sándor: Of course there will be! Most of last year's exhibitors have already responded and are enthusiastically preparing for the II. Hungary Pen Show. Without claiming completeness, we will have with us the premium, high-tech fountain pen brand Etelburg, aircraft designer engineer Zsolt Pataki with his titanium-made Capillaris fountain pens., a Shirokuma Web Store and the Drawing Shop team, the Pentel, a Pen Shop, a Binder’s Notebooks and the Szibapen. Of course, the Pennonia and the Pendors also arrives with a wide selection and of course new items.
Máté: Good news for lovers of vintage writing instruments, as we can once again welcome Zoltán Kovács, the pen restorer among the exhibitors, who not only presents unparalleled curiosities but also brings fountain pens for sale. Tom Westerich, the penboard.de founder, also arrives with old writing instruments. Ferenc Heisz also brings his exceptional collection of antique writing tools. We are also strengthening the vintage line with a new exhibitor: Katarzyna Stier (PenSpa) has also accepted our invitation, bringing antique fountain pens for sale and also dealing with repairs.
Csaba: The I. Hungary Pen Showworkshops and various calligraphy demonstrations were popular at the -n. Are similar programs planned for this year as well?
Sándor: We also saw that there was great interest, every advertised workshop took place with maximum attendance. There will also be new items here this year: Andrea Demény illustrator is holding a drawing workshop, Urban Skechers with its members, interested participants can draw with fountain pens.
A Dezső Buzogány and Dávid Schallinger „Manoeye” is holding calligraphy workshops themed around calligraphic writing with modern writing tools – visitors to the exhibition can participate in these mini events for free.
At the II. Hungary Pen Show calligrapher Péter Pászti is preparing for a Guinness record: he will write Gothic letters for 8 hours. We will also have a game related to this for visitors, but we won't reveal the details just yet.
Csaba: How many visitors do you expect?
Máté: Last year was an experiment; we couldn't even estimate how many saw potential in the Hungary Pen Show. It was great to see visitors coming all day, some traveled from the countryside for several hours to arrive by opening time. It’s especially pleasing that we received only positive feedback from our exhibitors. Many stayed until closing because they always found another interesting writing instrument or a fellow collector to chat with. Last year's event attracted 600 curious attendees, and this year we expect 1000 visitors.
Sándor: Ours is a friendly, family-oriented event that also provides an opportunity for writing instrument enthusiasts to get to know each other and chat. Many came from the Pens & Watches Facebook group. It was a wonderful feeling to experience what it’s like when members of an online community „go out into the sun” and meet each other in person, „offline.” This event is also about that wonder. But you know this too, Csaba, as you accompanied teenagers as the event host who were experiencing the colorful world of writing instruments for the first time at the Hungary Pen Show...
...this is indeed the case, and I proudly report that there were those who became fountain pen enthusiasts as a result of the experiences gained there.
Máté: This is also an important goal of this event, to pass on the love of writing instruments and writing. Whether it’s about fountain pens or ballpoint pens, inks, or papers, it can be said about all our exhibitors that they are not only authentic but true enthusiasts of their profession. This is felt at this event. We put our heart and soul into it because we believe in what we do.
The venue and date of the event:
- II. Hungary Pen Show
- November 16, 2024 – Saturday, 10:00 – 18:00
- Lurdy Conference and Event Center, Room 5
- www.hungarypenshow.hu
