Established in Germany in 1928 as a fountain pen manufacturer, Rotring went on to be acquired by Newell Brands in 1998.

[2] The company's first product was the "Tintenkuli", a type of pen with a narrow steel tube instead of a conventional nib.

In 1967, the company introduced its first drawing set, that consisted of compass, technical pens, templates, inks, scale ruler and other tools.

In 1971, Rotring acquired writing instrument manufacturer Adolf Waldmann KG of Pforzheim.

During the decade, Rotring set new subsidiaries in other European countries, while the "600" mechanical pencil was introduced in 1989.

New releases came in 1995 with the "Xonox", a variation of the Tikky model in form of a marker pen with a needlepoint tip.