It’s the first time I actually do this for any pen brands or any fountain pen person around the world, but I thought these answers would provide a sort of insight to the thinking of the owner of a stationery brand - something that we rarely think of when it comes to the usual sides we as consumers see. So, here are a few of the answers that we talked about during a short conversation last weekend.

What led you to making fountain pen inks in the first place?

To be honest, it's not necessarily called fate, but the main reason I chose to make inks was to escape poverty. We have to escape poverty first so we can do whatever we want later (laughs). Having said that, besides the above reason, I chose fountain pen ink products because firstly, I had used fountain pens from childhood until adulthood, and several decades ago in Vietnam, specifically is Saigon, there were only two sources of inks: one was to import foreign inks (mostly Parkers but the authenticity was uncertain), the other was to source domestically produced ink. The price of foreign ink was too high and difficult to widely access, and the quality of domestic products at that time was not really stable (due to limitations in technology as well as raw material sources at that time); So I thought why don't I produce my own writing ink, and from there I started researching and researching ink production myself.

In your opinion, what lesson do you think is the most valuable from starting a business to developing the company until now?

I think this is a lesson about good control of product input quality, in more detail, input materials to produce a product. For example, I once encountered a case, about ten years ago, where the quality of raw materials was unstable, which affected product quality. Fortunately, that batch of goods had only just been transported to the distributors. The products there had not yet been sold, luckily we discovered and recalled it promptly, otherwise the consequences would have been unpredictable.

To create a successful stationery brand, what do you think is the key?

I think the word "Trust" is always the reason why Queen still exists in the volatile market to this day. We must be trustworthy to customers in terms of service commitment as well as product quality assurance. Besides, I also have to be passionate about the profession, because most stationery products do not have as high a profit as other products (laughs).

What do you think would be the next trend in the fountain pen ink market?

I think that today's fountain pen ink products have grown out of being used only for writing, as evidenced by the fact that ink manufacturers around the world are gradually directing consumers to fine arts with ink products with more colors. More effects are added to the characteristics of the inks such as sheen, shading, glitter, even ink colors that make it difficult to see the handwriting when writing (laughs). As for Vietnam, I think the above art trend already exists, but is not yet widespread because the price is still high compared to the average income of people, but in the near future it will be the same, so Queen will also start investing in producing new products to meet demand and keep up with trends.

In the current trend of a fast-pace society with the focus on convenience and speed, and a lot of stationery brands are now focusing on the development of “tech” stationery such as erasable ink pens, why do you still lean toward more traditional and analog products?

As I answered in the previous question, first things first is that I like using fountain pens as well as the habit of using fountain pens from childhood to adulthood. You can also call it a passion for the profession. I have always kept and will continue to choose to develop this writing ink product because our Vietnamese education system always values human personality training and general knowledge right from the time students start entering class.

I strongly agree and support the teaching of writing with a fountain pen for children when they first learn to write, which is very correct; I remember when I was young, when I first learned to write with a fountain pen, well, not really a fountain pen anymore, but an ink pen (laughs), it felt very strange and sometimes I was annoyed because I wrote very slowly. But gradually, as I got used to writing, I began to feel the tip of the pen as well as the flow of ink, and I thought that controlling the handwriting was a very great achievement at that time; I also discovered that practicing writing later helped me control my temper well. True to the saying "Your handwriting makes your characters”.

In addition, I always think that using a fountain pen and ink will always bring a more realistic feeling and something very different from using a ballpoint pen or gel when taking notes. Today's society is developing very quickly, everyone has a busy job to make a living, but I think each of us will have times when we have to stop and think about what our life's purpose is, or what we want to become. What kind of person have I become? Have I achieved the milestones in my life plan? ..v..v... With the tendency of people to gradually want to return to learn more about themselves in different ways such as traveling to experience, meditate, etc., or write down a couple thoughts down, journaling/diary or writing daily life plans with fountain pens like today, I think the decision to continue investing in improving fountain pen ink products is still on the right track. I hope that Queen will not only be a companion of the same age as students, but can become a companion or help in each of us's journey to find ourselves.

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