Introduction of artisans: Menu ----------------------------- Introduction ----------------------------- Introduction "Clothing" Kyo yuzen silk dyeing / Masahiro Ikeuchi Nishijin textile / Takahisa Tamura Kyo yuzen silk dyeing / Ryotaro Hika Kyo Yuzen silk dyeing / Tomoko Fujii Flower arrangement / Michihisa Watanabe ----------------------------- Introduction "Eating and Drinking" Japanese dishes / Takeshi Shinmura Rice / Takashi Hashimoto Sake / Yoshihiro Higashino ----------------------------- Introduction "Living" Synthetic resin / Shigemi Inari Kiyomizu-ware / Hirokazu Kato Woodblock printing / Yuko Harada Jidaigire / Taro Matsumura Folding fans / Takahito Mizukami

At my company, Maisendo, we are producing and marketing Kyoto-style folding fans and Japanese sundries. We market to the five shops that we run in Kyoto (three folding fan shops and two sundries shops), online shops (primarily operated by Rakuten and Yahoo), nationwide department stores (that sell folding fans from spring to summer, and sundries throughout the year) and retailers and wholesalers. Whereas I am responsible for the company's overall management as a director, I am particularly committed to merchandise design. Together with our staff, I develop folding fan designs, select materials, and decide specifications of fan slats and accessories. I also place orders for production and provide various instructions to producers. At Maisendo, we conduct painting fan designs and most of the finishing processes in house, but we outsource the majority of fan-making processes to various specialists. There are at least 27 processes, such as producing slats, attaching paper to the slats and finishing the fans. Each process is conducted by specialists under contract.

My father founded Maisendo, and I have been proud of our family business. Since I was little, I have long desired to succeed to the family business. I often helped my parents with the business and I knew that our customers valued our products greatly. Since our business was small, it was easy to recognize all transactions under way. Before I succeeded to the business, my father marketed our products to wholesalers. With decline in wholesalers, however, I began to develop other sales channels, including department stores and our own shops. I also began outsourcing production to China. In this way, I have been expanding our business over the past 15 years.
Since we began producing folding fans in China, we can meet growing market demand for our products. In China, Japanese artisans are teaching production techniques. Until three or four years ago, Chinese labor costs were very low. At present, however, labor costs in China are rising, as are material costs. Even so, I believe it was right to commence production in China. If I had not decided to produce in China, we could not have met the soaring market demand for our products. On the other hand, we continue to produce paper folding fans in Kyoto. Since the item is our original product line, we cannot outsource its production anywhere but Kyoto.

I hope to create a workplace that is friendly and pleasant for all workers. If our staff members enjoy performing their day-to-day tasks, I am confident that they will produce high-quality articles.

Up to my junior-high-school days, my mother was operating a dressmaking shop. Accordingly, I grew up seeing imported Western textiles and shop assistants sewing them. Upon graduating from art school, I joined a textile company in Kyoto and engaged in designing motifs for printing. This experience is a great help to me in the present manufacturing business.

I regard all people I have encountered through my business as my masters. My father, who loves new designs and products, has also influenced me significantly.

A customer ordered to us to produce a special folding fan, which he planned to give to an overseas friend during a trip abroad. The delivery of the fan, however, was delayed due to an error in our order management, although we seldom make such errors. Since I was well aware of the customer's strong desire to present the folding fan to his friend in person, I took the fan to Narita International Airport on the day of his departure. Whereas I felt very sorry for the customer because of the delay, I also felt happy to have handed the fan to him in person.

I hope to create a pleasant workplace where employees can enjoy working and feel that their task is worthy. I also hope that our customers will be pleased with our products and services, and that they will select our products as special gifts for someone important. At our company we have many young employees. To provide them with ample opportunities to develop their potential, I hope to expand our business by starting new business lines.