Behind the Brand: Zebra Pen
Zebra Pen’s Intriguing Origins
The Zebra Pen Corporation was founded in New York in August 1982 as an independent corporation that was wholly owned by Zebra Co. Ltd., which is located in Tokyo, Japan.
The Zebra trademark was adopted in 1914. Legend has it that Mr. Ishikawa, founder of Zebra Co. Ltd., wanted a company name that would be memorable, but also appropriate for their export business to other countries. He took an English/Japanese dictionary and, opening it Japanese style from the back, started with the “Z” words. He stopped at “Zebra”.
Upon further research, Mr. Ishikawa found that zebras are gentle animals with a strong family herding instinct. This was an important attribute, since he wanted to build a business in which employees and customers were all part of a family-like culture. The fact that the zebra looks like it is decorated with large calligraphic pen strokes may have also appealed to the visual image he was seeking.
Today, the Zebra Pen brand is as unique as the products we sell. Zebra Pen Corporation offers an extensive line of writing instruments including ballpoint pens, highlighters, mechanical pencils, gel rollers, and correction pens. When you see a product with this brand name, you are guaranteed quality, satisfaction, and ultimate writing performance. Find out more about Zebra Pen on their website, zebrapen.com. You can also browse our store to see our selection of Zebra pens.