"The conceptualization of the KATE SUPER SHARP LINER EX goes back around 5 years. Liquid-type eyeliners are unusual in that they are cosmetics but also a makeup tool. It's important that these eyeliners can draw lines easily. When I thought about how we'd want to start by developing the brush in the quest for evolution, it occurred to me that the felt-tip pen I always use is from Pentel." (KATE development team member)

"We were surprised when KATE first reached out to us. We have previously worked on makeup items before, but starting the development of a liquid eyeliner from scratch was a challenging project for us. Because we have to present what we ourselves find easy to use during the development phase, there was considerable trial-and-error involved in creating the prototype." (Pentel development team member)

"We were confident about the ease in drawing lines from the EX version, but the 'level of ease' varies by user. Some people are really good at using any type of brush, but we'd also want customers who use liquid eyeliners for the first time to be excited that they drew good lines, and we'd also want them to learn to like doing makeup even more after such an experience. We were convinced that upgrading the SUPER SHARP LINER EX brush had to be done for the KATE brand." (KATE development team member)

"In addition to achieving even finer lines through incorporating Pentel's proprietary tapering technology, we made progress on the development of this eyeliner by adding stability during use by changing it to a "Tsumiho" shape that we use also on our brush pens. 
Furthermore, we used our newly developed fiber created through years of research. However, increasing the types of fibers used won't necessarily make drawing lines easier. The balancing of these fibers was challenging yet very rewarding." (Pentel development team member)

"By incorporating the newly developed fiber, the SUPER SHARP LINER EX2.0 can now hold a lot of fluid and hence won't fade as much. The Tsumiho brush production also provides a more stable sweep, which you can feel when drawing on the corner of the eye. We will continue developing products that will let our customers enjoy applying makeup." (KATE development team member)