Retro 51 2017 Catalog
I recently talked with George Kartsotis on his way home from the Santa Fe Pen Show and asked him a few questions about his company, Retro 51. As some of you already know, Mr. Kartsotis has decided to retire from the company he founded 30 years ago and possibly close up the shop for good. While this is a blue time for those of us that love the Tornado pens, I wanted to ask George directly about his memories of the shop and the things that made these pens so great.
ML - How did you get interested in pens and starting your own company to make them?
GK - When I was growing up I received a promotion from my job and my grandmother gave me a nice pen as a present to celebrate the achievement. Ever since I have liked carrying nice pens with me.
ML - When you started Retro 51 in Texas near your brothers that were just starting up the Fossil watch company, did you ever collaborate with them to make a pen to go with one of their watches?
GK - No, we kept our companies separate. They (Tom and Kosta Kartsotis) wanted their company to be big, really big, and while they did provide help and guidance along the way, I wanted to keep things small with Retro 51. This gave me the chance to work on the things I really enjoyed about owning my own company.
ML - How many pens have you designed and sold?
GK - In terms of number sold I don’t know, but we have made over 1,000 different designs. The tornado we came out with in 1990 was obviously the keeper. You can find all the old catalogs on our site. Click Here
ML - How many people work at Retro 51?
GK - Eight.
ML - Eight?!
GK - Yup, we went up to twenty-five for a time to handle everything, but for the most part we keep the pen parts the same and only update the body to keep it all simple so we can focus on what matters most. This isn’t a pen that needs to be upgraded, it is made to match what the users are interested in. If you like fishing, the latest fish design is made just for you. If you like the Space Shuttle, we have you covered. If you enjoy going to the Smithsonian, we made several for that too!
ML - What was your favorite project you worked on?
GK - My favorite thing I worked on was the radio. We built a radio with a great retro look to it and got to design it with some great people.
From the Retro 51 2006 catalog
ML - And your favorite pen?
GK - That would be the Sterling Silver pen we made with the Art Deco look to it. It really was a great pen.
(Mike Dudek at the Clicky Post has a great review of this pen Here)
ML - What pen are you using today?
GK - Well you know we just released the Fish Pen and I got a special one-of-a-kind ‘lunker’ pen. There is a picture of a similar one in the latest Pen Addict podcast show notes.
ML - Do you come up with all the pen designs yourself?
GK - Not at all (laughs!) This is a team effort. Everyone at the company comes up with ideas and pitch them to Richard who then mocks up the designs. Richard has worked here at the company for over 20 years. An interesting pen we came up with together is the Bamboo Tornado that contributes to the Arbor Day Foundation. To date, we have saved over 6 million sq. ft. of the rainforest from deforestation.
ML - When you retire from the company are you planning on selling the company or simply closing everything down?
I am open to selling it as long as I believe that it is going to the right owner. I don’t want to sell this to Walmart or Target. I have never been in this for the money. If I can’t find the right fit then so be it, but I am open to anything that comes my way!
From the Retro 51 2006 catalog
I believe one of the best parts of this pen using and collecting hobby is talking to some interesting folks, and George is no exception. He is genuine and authentic and a pleasure to chat with. It is easy to see how he has built a great group of employees with his kind manner.
His last words to me were, “Life is too short” and he gave me the opportunity to finish his company’s tag line, “to carry an ugly pen.”
Thank you George and all the people at Retro 51 for making some great pens for us to enjoy!
Mike
