Floaty pens were first manufactured in 1946 by the Eskesen Company located in Store Merløse, Denmark. The company, which officially calls these writing implements Floating Action Pens, is still the main manufacturer today. During their sixty+ year history well over half a billion pens have been produced, 90% of the world's supply.
Floaty pens consist of two main components:
1) a lower half made of opaque plastic usually containing a retractable ball-point tip; and
2) an upper half called the design barrel. The design barrel is a transparent plastic oil-filled tube that contains a stationary background scene with a moving component on a glider in front. When the pen is titled horizontally to one side or another the glider figure moves across the background scene.
These pens are most typically commissioned by advertisers, organizations, people hosting special events or souvenir shops at tourist attractions.
Floaty Industries was founded in Southern California during the summer of 1996. It was a summer to remember. Sandy Medof, a long-time floaty collector, and two intrepid internet explorers, Jonathan Katz and Ari Shindler, launched one of the first internet stores. It resulted in lots of attention and the business took off. Floaty is not the only designer and distributor of the float products, but we have distinguished ourselves by opening up new markets for the floaty pen, with our outstanding creative design team and by excellent customer service. It's a fun and enduring product. We're happy to spread the joy.