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Our Story |
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Our Story
Plotkin Pens was founded in November 2001 by the
father-and-son team of Mark and Matt Plotkin. The
company offers custom pens, pencils, and accessories,
with all items handcrafted at a studio in Longview,
Washington. The company’s product line begins at $20.00
and offers a wide range of options, soon to include a
“Buy This One” feature that allows customers to select
the material, style, case, and engraving for each gift
they order.
The Plotkins’
studio is fully equipped to handle everything from
individual requests to large orders involving thousands of
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Origins
Most companies aren’t founded by an eleven-year-old boy, but
that is exactly how Plotkin Pens got its start. In 2001,
Mark and Matt built a complete set of bedroom furniture for
Matt, who was a 5th grader at the time. The work included
shelving units, a loft bed, and a desk. The project
sparked their interest in woodworking, and Matt began to
explore how they might do more in this area. “I thought the
big furniture projects were probably out of my reach,” Matt
said. “But I decided we could make smaller items, and pens
just seemed like the perfect fit.” |
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The Plotkins
attended a woodworking show in Portland, Oregon, where Matt
gathered information and purchased a starter kit. Mark
agreed to buy a lathe, and the two have been hard at work
ever since.
“At first, we gave the pens as gifts to friends and
relatives,” Matt said. But as word got around, the Plotkins
realized there was a much broader demand for the products,
and they began selling their wares.
“By 2004, we started thinking of ourselves as a business,”
Mark said. |
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A big
order from the State of Washington and another from a
major corporation convinced the Plotkins that they were
on the right track. Today, the orders continue to roll
in as the company’s reputation continues to spread.
Oregon governor Ted Kulongoski has received a Plotkin
pen, as has his Washington counterpart, Christine
Gregoire.
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Philosophy
The Plotkins are adamant about crafting high-quality
products. They also understand that reliability and personal
service are the keys to their success. “We control the
process from start to finish,” Mark said. “We have a
fully-equipped studio, and that gives us the ability to
handle all aspects of the process and to make sure that
things get done right.” The Plotkins have discovered
that they enjoy selling their products as much as they enjoy
creating them. “We’ve gotten a great response from our
clients,” Matt said.
“Matt and I love doing the woodworking,” Mark acknowledged.
“But on top of that, we also take pleasure in seeing how
much people like giving and receiving the gifts we make.” |
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Click to
see a larger view |
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From Raw
Material to Finished Product
Mark and Matt begin with 40 to 50 pound slabs of madrone
burl. Using a band saw, they cut the block into strips and
then reduce them to ¾-inch pieces that form matching halves
of the pen. Grains and colors in the Plotkins’ individual
items and sets are consistent because they use adjacent
pieces of wood to provide a perfect pairing.
The matching pieces are drilled, turned on the lathe, and
fine-tuned with hand chisels. The barrels are worked through
five stages of sanding—the final one with 1,500-grit
paper—before polish and a friction finish are applied.
To complete the process, internal components are inserted
and the trim is pressed onto the pen.
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Click to see a
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Laser
Engraving
Plotkin Pens recently purchased its own top-of-the-line
Epilog Laser Engraver. The unit is linked to a Corel Draw
software program that makes it a snap to access logos and
graphics on the computer. The result is in-house
customization, exact duplication, and rapid turnaround. The
engraving service allows clients to add names, dates,
phrases, sketches, and other designs to their gifts.
“Clients can send us a photo of what they want us to engrave
or ask us to design something for them,” Mark said. “We can
do the basic set-up on our computer, then send the file back
and get the client’s okay before we begin the actual
engraving work. This translates into a very high level of
customer satisfaction.” And for Mark and Matt Plotkin,
customer satisfaction is always the bottom line.
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Woods
Plotkin Pens specializes in madrone burl, a wood native
to the Pacific Northwest. Tan to brown in color with
streaks of white, red, and caramel, madrone burl is a
dense wood that finishes beautifully. Mark and Matt
purchase madrone burl in large slabs and machine the pen
blanks themselves. This allows them to cut each piece in
a way that will produce the most elegant grain patterns.
In addition to madrone burl, the Plotkins also use
cocobolo, a dark-grained hardwood found in Central
America. Cocobolo’s attractive color, texture, and
durability make it a favorite species to work with. In
addition, the oil in cocobolo gives the wood a sleek,
natural polish. |
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