WHEN MARCO TOMASETTA joined Montblanc in 2021, he went straight into the archive. Specifically, for the writing instruments. In the written word, he says, lays the heart of what he wanted to achieve with the German brand.

“The first thing that impressed me when I joined, and that I wanted to put a spotlight on, was the archive and the savoir-faire related to writing. I wanted to make those visible.”

What he found went beyond a collection of objects but an entire language of design. Pen nibs, ink holders, the caps – the details of Montblanc’s most famous creation, The Meisterstück, in particular, would become a point of reference. Its proportions, its clarity of line, its immediate recognisability would find homes in surprising places, such as the connective joint of a bag and its handle. Or a wallet in the form of an envelope.

The archive made clear that Montblanc’s products were built around the art of writing in the most functional sense, not merely its symbolism. That shifted how he approached everything else. Bags were designed to hold notebooks and pens as a starting point. Retail was built around the desk. Collaborations moved closer to storytelling. The archive gave him a structure to work within a set of limits that kept the brand consistent as it expanded.

“I would say [joining Montblanc was] a turning point in my career,” he says. “I fully immersed myself in the brand, and it reminded me that culture, writing, and design have been with me throughout my career, really, throughout my life.”

The design language follows a single reference. The Meisterstück pen is used as a base and extended across categories. “I then decided to apply the same aesthetic of the Meisterstück to other items.”

That translation has been literal at times. Bags have been designed to carry notebooks and writing tools as standard, with internal structures built around that use. In some cases, the function is more explicit, including pieces that unfold into portable writing surfaces or integrate storage for pens directly into the design.

His definition of luxury is direct. “To me, luxury is about simplifying, so really, less is more.” The aim is consistency in proportion and line, carried from writing instruments into leather goods and accessories.

He could have chosen an easier path. His native design language was leather goods, having had senior roles at Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Chloé. Montblanc could have been fertile ground for that expertise, with their accessories range already a strong pillar that could have easily flourished under Tomasetta’s hands. But what he found in Hamburg was a different kind of production. “The first thing that struck me was the artisans’ work in Hamburg,” he says. “I could really appreciate their craftsmanship, which was something I absolutely wanted to protect.”

That early focus set the direction. Tomasetta’s role has been to bring the brand into alignment across categories that had often been treated separately. “As the brand’s creative director, my goal was to unify all categories around the message of culture and writing.”

That idea extends beyond the product. When Tomasetta arrived, Montblanc was largely understood through its pens. His remit was broader, to expand the brand into something closer to a complete lifestyle offering, spanning leather goods, watches and accessories, while keeping writing at the centre of it all.

He speaks about it in operational terms: “Everyone working at Montblanc has a clear, strong message to follow… When a brand’s inside is tight and its purpose is clear, it becomes stronger in the market.”

And it’s a process that is ongoing. “It is a constant, daily work, and it goes very deep,” he says. That work does not stop when he leaves the studio. “Even when I do something outside of work, for example, when I go to a cultural event, I bring back what I’ve seen, what I’ve learned to educate my research for beauty and for aesthetics.”

It’s also allowed the brand to expand how it positions itself creatively, with Montblanc’s recent work also touching on the storytelling of film. Specifically, Montblanc’s collaboration with Wes Anderson created to mark 100 years of the Meisterstück.

The project centred on a short film directed by Anderson and expanded across retail, campaign imagery and product. The visual language, including colour and set design, was drawn from the archive, while the partnership extended into a limited-edition pen designed by Anderson himself. The work was carried through stores and activations globally, rather than sitting as a single campaign.

Tomasetta has previously described Anderson’s approach as closely aligned with his own, particularly the way he works with historical references and updates them with precision.

But always at the centre of his thinking is the connection between writing and design. Tomasetta treats writing as a universal act, something that moves across generations and geographies without needing to be reframed or updated to stay relevant.

Even retail sits inside the same system. The new Sydney flagship on the corner of King and George Street reflects ideas first developed in Montblanc’s Milan showrooms, where collections and strategy are presented to press and clients. “The showroom really exemplifies my idea of aesthetic,” he says.

Right down to an in-store replica of the very desk that Tomasetta uses in his offices at the Montblanc headquarters that customers are able to order their own version of.

That thinking carries through to the boutiques. “I have been working with the architects to create places that feel elegant and timeless.” The focus is practical. “We have a deep focus on the desk, and studied the furniture, the lighting, the materials, the accessibility.”

He wants people to use the space, not just move through it. “I want our boutiques to feel like temples of culture, places you walk past and feel compelled to enter, sit at the desk, and write.”

But across all of it, the hierarchy is fixed: Writing comes first.

“Writing is the mother, the origin of all things.”

Related:

A look inside the Montblanc universe, through the eyes of Wes Anderson

The magic and mastery of Montblanc leather