About us...
Swan Neck Pens are the result of over five years' research and development by M.A.D. Associates Ltd, a UK company based near Bristol. The M.A.D. acronym is derived from three directors' names, Mike, Anthony and Dillon.
Anthony's left-handed daughter Amy had started primary school in summer 2000 with all the enthusiasm you'd expect of a lively five year-old.
Left-handedness, however, soon began to slow Amy's progress as she was unable to 'find' her own writing style using a standard pen. She quickly became anxious, upset and overwhelmed by her 'disadvantage'.
"78% of left-handed students surveyed complained of backache or hand fatigue when writing".
Amy's father Anthony explored existing left-handed pens and soon discovered that there were none on the market that solved the problem.
Rising to the challenge, Anthony's friend Mike experimented by making a range of concept pens offering varying degrees of grip 'bend'. Dillon's engineering expertise then turned the best one into samples.
The team knew they'd hit upon a winner when Amy took to the Swan Neck design like a duck (or even a swan!) to water. Not only did she make immediate progress with her handwriting, her confidence quickly returned too.
Equally delighted were Amy's teachers, who immediately recognised the Swan Neck Pen's unique advantages. Subsequent trials with literally hundreds of other left-handers of all ages confirm that the left-handed writing problem really is solved.
M.A.D. Associates Ltd, which also now includes Amy's Mum Heather, is working with manufacturers directly and marketing Swan Neck Pens worldwide.
Director Mike Deacon comments: "It's taken us a long time and a great deal of hard work and investment to get the Swan Neck Pen into production. But when you see the faces of people - not just children - after they have tried the pen and found that it actually works, it makes it all worthwhile".
