Gyuri Fata’s student. A designer from Miskolc kicks open the gates of luxury – The Tesla of fountain pens is coming
Starting from Miskolc, he first surprised two of the world’s most coveted and luxury-associated pen manufacturers with his ideas, and then he set out to build his own brand.
The article was originally published in Hungarian on Napi.hu and was later picked up and republished by Északhirnök. English translation by Etelburg.
"I am a designer whose work proves that a pen is not just a tool for writing, but a means of cultural expression that should not be allowed to disappear," - says Gábor Megyeri, chief designer and managing director of Etelburg, as he defines his philosophy at the beginning of our conversation. For him, a pen is an "indestructible communication tool that also serves as an excellent communication platform."
The personal belongings of the legendary Sissi-actress auctioned
The reason for our meeting is lying on the table, seemingly unnoticed. Suppose everything goes according to plan, within weeks. In that case, the world will be talking about this unusually shaped, intriguingly textured, and surprisingly versatile fountain pen that performs professionally across an exceptionally broad range of uses.
After three years of design, production preparation, technological and innovation development, and meticulous fine-tuning, the pen has finally reached serial production. It may be sold at around a thousand dollars per piece, with the American Kenro Industries retail network being the first to offer it. This is also where Etelburg plans to begin its global expansion.
At this point, however, it's worth pausing. Behind this debut-ready brand name lies more than a decade of foundational work, making it essential to look back.
Miskolc, MOME, Montblanc
In 2007, in Hamburg, Gábor Megyeri made a promise to himself: one day, he would step onto the world stage with his own brand. By then, he had already been working at Montblanc, the luxury pen manufacturer, for several months. He was beginning to understand that in this field, design and manufacturing could reach such an elevated level that the products were no longer just industrial artworks but true pieces of fine art. He also realized that he was standing right in the middle of this small, privileged universe.
From filmmaking to painting to graphic design, he had tried everything, but his focus only truly aligned when - after an unsuccessful attempt to get into the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design (MOME) - he studied electronic graphic design at a vocational school.
That’s where he came under the mentorship of György Fata, a defining figure in Miskolc’s art scene at the time, who, as Megyeri recalls, "effectively guided me toward what I truly wanted to do." That period remains a crucial part of his journey. After thorough university preparation, he was admitted to MOME in 2002. However, it was only in his second year that his interest was truly sparked - through various projects involving premium German brands, his fascination with Montblanc pens, which had already existed, became deeply ingrained.
Although he spent years refining his portfolio without real industry exposure, by his fourth year, he was determined to present his designs to a luxury pen manufacturer. Some of his university peers laughed at his ambitions, calling them overly bold, but Montblanc reached out within a week, offering him a contract. As a result, he completed his thesis project while working in Hamburg.
Looking back, it’s much more daunting
In his first few days at Montblanc, he constantly felt on the verge of fainting. But soon, he got used to the fact that he had been granted entry into a world where, as he put it, "every step you take is through over 100 years of concentrated design history, where elite culture surrounds you from all directions, and the presence of celebrities is almost tangible.
Only later did he fully grasp how exceptional his position was - he had unrestricted access to analyze every pen the company had ever produced. In hindsight, he finds it almost frightening how natural it seemed at the time to be sitting at the desk next to Montblanc’s lead designer, working on the brand’s next masterpiece.
"The" pen - Etelburg
His first project, the Mark Twain pen, had a last known retail price of $1,500 (though it has long been unavailable). This masterpiece, filled with symbols and references that evoked the writer’s identity, gave Gábor Megyeri a glimpse into an extraordinary world - and he liked what he saw.
"It was incredibly impressive; I felt like I belonged there. And while I wanted to keep my feet on the ground, something inside me knew - that’s the height where I want to be, where I want to create," - he explains.
The article is available in Hungarian on the Északhirnök portal by clicking here.
The original publication can be accessed on Napi.hu by clicking here.