Hello:
I am new here. I have always wanted a Montblanc pen, and I think that my wife is considering purchasing one for me. I am interested in the Meisterstuck Platinum ballpoint. Unfortunately we do not live near a Montblanc Boutique store. I called Montblanc today and they said that none of the online dealers are authorized dealers, and that if I were to purchase online they would not be able to guarantee that it would be genuine. I found a place online that has the pen, which retails for $285, and they are selling for $225. The site is worldlux.com. So how am I to get my wife to purchase this for me if we do not live near a Montblanc Boutique? Most of the online stores sell for much cheaper also. How can I get my pen and ensure that it is genuine? Thanks!

Jimmy and Mort at Total Office Products here in Atlanta give great service and will sell to you over the phone. Their website is http://www.go-pens.com

Richard

Thanks for the reply! Being new to the pen world - what should I look out for regarding counterfeit pens? I called MB's customer service and they advised me to only buy from a boutique to ensure that I was getting a genuine product. However, there are none anywhere even close to where I live. Thanks

You can check The Fountain Pen Hospital. They're an authorized MB dealer.

There are lots of reputable on-line pen dealers. MB just wants you to buy from one of their full price retail dealers to keep the perceived value of their pens as high as possible.

As for fakes, I think if you can't tell a fake from the real thing, then you might as well save a lot of money and buy a much cheaper product. (Not the fake, just any old legitimate $10 pen.)

I have dealt with WorldLux, both online and in their brick & mortar storefront. I can't speak directly for their status as a MB dealer, but they are most certainly a genuine going concern with a fair return policy. I can't beleive that any pen you would get from them sould not be the genuine article.

Jim

I too have used worldlux several times (for Lamy, Conway Stewart, and MB products) and found their service to be very good. I would have no doubt about their wares being the genuine article. You could email MB directly to confirm that they are an authorized MB dealer.

Otherwise, FPH, Joon, Farneys would be other online options to consider. If you don't mind a used pen, you could consider posting a WTB (wanted to buy) add on the Pentrace Greenboard and/or this forum

Good Luck:)
Ken

HI, I echo what others have said. Try fountain Pen Hospital or Worldlux. Both are good sellers. By the way, you might ask them what their return policy is up front.

Which model are you looking at? You might get some interesting feedback here on the model you are thinking of buying BEFORE you order it. j

I did call MB and asked them about online authorized dealers. They told me that the only authorized dealers are the Montblanc Boutique shops.

Their website claims the same thing. But a number of reputable shops claim to be authorized MB dealers. These shops don't list the prices, as MB policy seems to require Instead, you have to email or call them to get the price and arrange for a purchase. Worldlux, Joon, and others do follow these policies. So chances are they are genuine authorized dealers and MB is not being honest with those who don't know better.

Perhaps MB owners on this board who have purchased from such dealers and who were able to get after sale service from MB can confirm that it is OK to buy from places other than MB butiques (KCck, Jeen?)

There is a seller on Ebay called Luke Nellen, based in Hong Kong. I bought a MB 149 from him last year, at a substantially knocked down price, and it arrived in perfect condition.

I have used Worldlux on a couple of occasions and found their service to be extremely good and friendly, though their prices are not always the cheapest.
Unfortunately for us Europeans there is always the problem of customs charges, which add as much as 20-22% to the price. This is a disgrace - we need a Euro-North American customs union and we need it FAST. President Bush please note!

I bought quiet a few items from WorldLux and they have been carrying very nice and genuine pens (MB is actually among the cheaper brands). And they are an authorized dealer. The discount they offer is pretty reasonable. Fountain Pen Hospital is also a good place to purchase pens. I think the price is similar. I prefer WorldLux for its cheap and fast shipping.

Jomashop is where you can also purchase genuine MB pens at bigger discounts, but it's not an authorized dealer.

You should buy from authorized dealer to get warranty. My recent experiences with MB purchases has not been so great. Their quality control seems to have been getting worse. However, their service is still pretty good, provided that you get the warranty coverage.

I have also bought from WorldLux. They are a genuine MB dealer and offer quick and reliable shipping even here to the UK.

I would also reccommend Pen Gallery in KL www.pengallery.com

They are also authorised MB dealers.

Unless you're buying in person at a Mont Blanc boutique for that VIP treatment experience, I don't recommend buying from Mont Blanc themselves because they charge full retail price. Like others have mentioned, worldlux, fountainpenhospital, joons, or altmanluggage are pretty good and they give a % discount off full retail too.

I WOULD STAY AWAY FROM JOMASHOP!

I looked into them for buying a $200 watch. They were located in NYC, so I wanted to visit them myself. I went to that address listed on their website and they don't exist. Called them several times; no pick-up. Searched them on google. Found lots of complaints. STAY AWAY

I wouldn't risk saving that couple of dollars on a pen that might not arrive, that might not come with a warranty, that might not come with a box, or a pen that might come defective and they wont' take it back.

When I first got into fountain pens, my then boss bought me a MB149 FP from Fountain Pen Hospital. The pen was defective, and I was able to return it to FPH without a problem, and then FPH replaced it and sent me a new pen.
I'd say stick to US based reputable retailers, so that you dont run into warranty/service type of problems.
then, of course, you have the option of buying vintage MB pens too.

I noted in another post that last week I visited the Montblanc store up on 57th street in Manhattan and was quoted a price THREE DOLLARS LESS than the price quoted us at FPH for the same exact pen. Why not try a MB boutique?
Also, while its true that you get VIP treatment in this store, why not enjoy it? I have personally tried on every last bit of jewelry in Tiffany's (several locations) and never concern myself with what the sales help are doing though I must say they have always been lovely to me. I suppose its all in the way you interpret things!

I might add that it's fun to shop in MB store. They have all the different nibs (including oblique/stub) nibs mounted for 146 for you to try out on their polished paper.

There is not much of VIP treatment though. Some sales people are pretty nice. But many are just snooty and rude.

Worldlux's brick-and-mortar store has a Mont Blanc mini-boutique within it. It looks identical to the displays in free-standing Mont Blanc boutiques. I can't explain why Mont Blanc corporate wouldn't identify Worldlux as an authorized seller, but they appear to be entirely legit.

I've had excellent experiences with Worldlux, great customer service.

Have you ever asked MB to clear up this mystery? I wonder what they would say to this.

Are there any reputable dealers that manage to stay reputable while giving deeper discounts on Montblanc and Conway Stewart pens?

Does anyone know of a list somewhere on this forum, or elsewhere?

Thanks.

Pierre

We have a member of this board who is a former Montblanc dealer in Germany, and he can probably shed some light on this question. Until he chimes in, here's how I understand things...

For many years, Montblanc was a pen manufacturer ONLY and did not engage in direct retail sales. All sales were done through separately-owned "authorized dealers" such as Fahrney's, Joon, Fountain Pen Hospital, World Lux, Paradise Pens, etc. These stores were allowed to discount a small amount off the MSRP, but not more than 15-20 percent.

Sometime in the 1980s or 1990s, following a general trend in the luxury goods industry (i.e., Cartier, Gucci, Louis Vitton, Ralph Lauren, etc.), Montblanc began to open its own boutiques. The boutiques claim to provide a higher level of service (pampering?) than do the authorized dealers, but they also sell only at full MSRP (except for rare sales of out-of-production merchandise.

This situation has yielded a troublesome result.... some customers go to the boutique, enjoy the pampering, try out the sample pens.... and then go down the street to an authorized dealer and pay 15-20 percent less for the same product. I suspect that Montblanc will someday have enough boutiques open around the world that they will shut down the network of authorized dealers, forcing all non-black-market sales to be at full MSRP.

As for who is an authorized dealer.... a pretty foolproof way to tell is whether the selling price is at least 80 percent of MSRP. If the price is lower, the seller is probably not authorized.

The bottom line: if you want to own a new Montblanc pen -- and have full warranty rights -- then you will pay 80 percent or more of MSRP. If you want a great deal, such as half price, then you're in the black market, and you assume all risks.

A good used Montblanc, however, can often be found at a great price....

You are asking two separate questions: one dealing with Montblanc and one dealing with Conway Stewart.

See my post above concerning Montblanc.

For Conway Stewart, the story is a bit different. I don't want to say much more, because I've heard that Conway Stewart's US distributor has been tussling with their retailers over exactly these kinds of issues recently, and all parties concerned are members of this board. The bottom line is that it is still possible to get a new Conway Stewart for less than 80 percent of MSRP, but you have to know where to ask. Posting a "list" would be counterproductive.

Thanks !!

Pierre

I have been dealing with Fountain Pen Hospital in NY for 15 of the 20 years I have been buying pens. Now there are a number of nice people selling pens, reputable, etc., however, from the perspective of integrity, price, product and service, FPH in NY is clearly #1. All of my referrals to FPH report back to me of complete satisfaction and they will (99% of the time) match any Dealer's price. They are the largest Pen Specialty Retailer in the US who is also an Authorized Mont Blanc Dealer.
1-800-253-PENS
www.fountainpenhospital.com
Ed Fingerman: info@fountainpenhospital.com tell Ed that Prestodini the magician sent you

I am not a paid advertisement, just a loyal customer! Best Wishes

Hi i think what Mont blanc means is that there is no "online authorized dealers". However stores like worldlux and joon are authorized dealers but just not online. That is why there is no prices on their website and you cannot order it online, you have to phone them to place a order. So i think the word "online" got Mont Blanc in germany mixed up. If you just ask them if "wordlux" is authorized dealer should solve the problem.
Just my 2 cent ~

It sounds like you are new to pens. My suggestion is that before you pull the trigger and spend that much money on a ballpoint pen that you may want to spend some time in a good pen store and look at all of the choices. Mont Blancs are nice, but there are other brands of higher quality and lower price. Mont Blanc spends far more on advertising that the other brands and they have been successful in building an image of luxury, but the quality lags behind the hype. The plastic they use (they call it 'precious resin' but it is a plexiglas plastic) is quite brittle and has a reputation for shattering if you drop it - I have personal experience that confirms this. If you like the MB the best then by all means get one, but I think you would be more than pleasantly surprised if you looked at some other high quality pen makers.