With Swiss-made watches, German-built writing instruments, and Italian leather goods, Montblanc’s expansive product tree has a distinct “best of European craftsmanship” flavor to it.

Of course, as a Watchonista reader, your first association with Montblanc will likely be with its timepieces. Whether the popular Iced Sea dive watches, Bohème ladies’ pieces, or more elevated time-telling executions from the Nicolas Rieussec line and timepieces born from its legacy sibling brand Minerva, Montblanc’s watchmaking reputation precedes it. But did you know the brand only began its modern era of watchmaking in 1997?

For most of the world, the Montblanc “white snowcap/star” is more keenly associated with fine writing implements, the production of which began in Hamburg, Germany, in 1909.

However, Montblanc also began producing impeccable leather goods in service to those writing tools in 1926, at first in Offenbach, Germany, to better mimic the craftsmanship of the pens themselves, before moving the lion’s share of the leather operation just outside of Florence, Italy, in the town of Scandicci in 2006.

Jazz Hands

The so-called “Jazz Era” presented a watershed change in the public’s mobility and created a new level of joie de vivre around travel. Pens were no longer limited to the desk; however, the era of cheap plastic pens was still a long way off. Therefore, travelers of all stripes (not only writers) sought a compact but elegant way to bring a writing instrument on their journeys.

Thus, very logically, the first products from Montblanc’s leather workshops focused on superb pen pouches that matched the finesse of the writing instruments they protected.

Crafted from the much-valued, then-Russian-sourced Juchten and cross-hatched Saffiano leather (hide sources still used by the maison, BTW), these functional products went the extra step for style and came in bold shades of blue, red, and green in addition to traditional brown or black leather pouches.

In fact, it wasn’t until the mid-1990s that, in concert with the arrival of its modern watchmaking era, Montblanc began applying its sense of luxury to defined leather collections, including larger leather goods. That same classic sense of easy civility has informed all of Montblanc’s leather-making efforts over the years, including new products created by the maison’s artistic director since 2021, Marco Tomasetta.

Road Tripping

The current international flavor of Montblanc is also an overall part of its leather story: Every design starts with a sketch from Tomasetta’s Parisian studio before moving to the artisans in Italy, where factors of leather quality, suppleness, grain, and durability are assessed before refining shape, proportions, and color approaches (with the modern help of 3D modeling) is done for the final manufactured pieces.

First introduced in 2025/26, Montblanc’s Writing Traveler Briefcase ($3,790) has become a signature of the brand’s leather work and may best exemplify the core inspiration of its take-along efforts.

The Writing Traveler is the design I have enjoyed bringing to life the most,” Tomasetta says. “It has become a signature shape that beautifully translates the concept of a desk into a portable form. In doing so, it pays homage to the very origin of Montblanc leather: accompanying you on life’s journey with the things that matter most. It is essentially your own private writing sanctuary, safely holding your tools of creativity while maintaining a beautiful air of mystery.

The handsome textured corteccia sfumato leather (think “bark-effect shaded” in English) of common examples of the Writing Traveler’s briefcase-sized format truly reveals its wonders when opened up on the road. While the exterior features smart, large pockets with dedicated spots to secure and easily retrieve pens, a notebook, a billfold, a watch (ok, with enough room for more modern tech accoutrements, if you must), unzipping the bag reveals an ingenious portable laptop desk.

New Skin in The Game?

Since its debut, the Writing Traveler has expanded into more and more leather expressions and shapes, including a modernly practical crossbody version. Behind this centenary celebration, however, Montblanc teased the release of a new collection of “soft” leather goods, including a Soft Traveler version of the Writing Traveler, for the Spring/Summer 2027 season.

Regardless of what we see on the shelves, you can be certain new leather products will not stray too far from Montblanc’s uncanny DNA: understated snow-cap logo elements, whimsical handles and closures inspired by the nibs of fountain pens, thoughtfully addressed compartments, and a lean towards slimmer, envelope shapes (which again, draws a line right back to the undeservedly “lost” art of writing).

You can learn more with a visit to Montblanc’s website.