Blackwing at 15: Why Analog Still Matters to Me

My job started simple: bring cool stationery products to Hong Kong and make sales. That’s what was on paper. To be honest, chasing numbers and running transactions never satisfied me. I wanted more than moving boxes from Point A to Point B.

I’m lucky. My boss told me, “Go to the world. Bring something worth living for back.” That single line changed everything. Instead of just thinking about margins, I started looking for products with real meaning—things with a heartbeat, not just a price tag.

At the NY Stationery Show, I met Charles Berolzheimer, whose family dedicated about 170 years to making pencils. From that encounter, Blackwing’s story grabbed me. Here was a brand that vanished, leaving behind fans like John Steinbeck. Charles revived it in 2010—not as a nostalgia trick, but to give people a chance to slow down and experience analog again.

Blackwing is more than smooth graphite. It stands for slowing down, taking time, letting your ideas spill out at their own pace. In a world that pushes you to go faster, Blackwing felt like a rebellion: put the devices away, grab a pencil, and just write.

Fifteen years since its revival, Blackwing thrives because people still want real moments. Using analog tools, feeling the scratch of graphite on paper, seeing ideas take shape slowly—all of that brings authenticity you won’t get from a keyboard.

Bringing Blackwing to Hong Kong wasn’t just about adding another product to our shelves. It changed how I see my job. I’m grateful for that push: find something with soul, share it with others, inspire a little joy. I see a growing community choosing analog. Not because we want to shut out the modern world, but because we want to savor it.

So, congrats Blackwing. Fifteen years, still making every moment matter. I’m proud to be part of the believers.