Yoshida & Co., Ltd.
Yoshida & Co., Ltd., known for its iconic brands "PORTER" and "Yoshida Kaban," celebrates its 90th anniversary this year.
Recently, a special exhibition commemorating the 90th anniversary was held in Kudanshita, Tokyo, and I was fortunate enough to receive an invitation and attend.
I was strongly impressed by something about a year ago, and it reinforced my conviction at the time.
That this team (Yoshida Kaban) is on a completely different level.
That we thought we knew "Yoshida Kaban," but we actually didn't.
About 1 year and 2 months ago, when I felt that, I told my staff, "Yoshida Kaban is doing something amazing, and I want to do it at CASANOVA someday." Due to various coincidences, one year later, we received this special opportunity.
LUGGAGE LABEL limited store -Onkochishin-
2025.12.06(SAT) ~ 2025.12.14(SUN)
In the autumn of 2024, as the 2025SS exhibition was in its final stages.
I had planned a dinner with someone who had helped me build our online store system a few years ago, thinking it would likely be my last business trip to Tokyo for the season.
After finishing my exhibition appointments, I had a little time before dinner, so I stopped by a few shops along the way.
That's where I encountered LUGGAGE LABEL.
I had zero prior knowledge, so much so that I didn't even know LUGGAGE LABEL was a brand by Yoshida Kaban until the sales assistant told me.
However, the moment I saw that bag, I strongly felt its robust craftsmanship, which wasn't just about aesthetics, and a certain "essence" emanating from it.
I felt both the typical and atypical qualities of Yoshida Kaban that I had imagined, and I was incredibly drawn in.
That bag, also featured in this post's thumbnail, is the one.
Dinner time was approaching, so I completed the purchase within about 10 minutes of entering the store.
While I felt like I had "found something wonderful" that I would normally want to take more time to buy, I also had no hesitation in making the decision in 10 minutes.
Time passed, and it was January 2025.
It was probably a weekday afternoon.
At a time when customer traffic was usually low, two men with an air clearly different from regular customers visited the store.
I thought it was probably brand representatives visiting stores before Paris Fashion Week and the domestic exhibitions that would follow, but it turned out to be the sales team from Yoshida Kaban.
For me, who had been fascinated by the bag I bought a few months prior, using it every holiday, it was an unexpected encounter at an unexpected time.
Feeling a sense of destiny, I unilaterally gushed about the感動 (deep impression/emotion) I felt when I completed the purchase in 10 minutes.
That was the beginning of everything that led to this event.
I would like to tell you about the various coincidences and connections between us and the Yoshida Kaban team that day directly at the event venue. However, for about half a year afterward, I kept persistently calling at opportune moments, repeatedly asking, "What's happening with our talk about doing something together?" like a clingy ex.
However, the kind members of the Yoshida Kaban team put in their best efforts, which led to this event.
I am very happy to be able to introduce it to everyone in this way during their 90th anniversary.
Allow me to briefly introduce Yoshida & Co., Ltd., the parent company.
Going back 90 years to 1935, founder Kichizo Yoshida established Yoshida Kaban Seisakusho (Yoshida Bag Manufacturing Co.).
Kichizo was 29 years old at the time, the same age as I am now.
Kichizo, who experienced the Great Kanto Earthquake in his late teens and the Pacific War shortly after founding his company, reportedly continued making bags by pulling a cart with materials through the devastated streets of Tokyo.
Afterward, Kichizo continued to create bags that adapted to the changing housing environment and lifestyles in Japan, driven by the increase in apartment buildings during post-war reconstruction. In 1962, he launched PORTER.
Thus, Porter, a brand known to every Japanese person, was born.
And that continues to this day, with the brand itself boasting over 60 years of history.
The astonishing longevity of a single brand for 60 years, and its continuous leadership in Japan's bag industry, is truly remarkable.
This level of excellence is truly beyond words, and the fact that a group has continued to grow for such a long time, exceeding the span of a single human life, is simply extraordinary.
I believe that the company's current state exists because Kichizo poured his spirit into his colleagues working on the bags until his passing in 1994.
Symbolizing this is the phrase "Ichishin Nyukon" (One Stitch, One Soul), which Yoshida & Co., Ltd. holds dear.
This phrase was coined by Kichizo, and its spirit continues to be inherited, with the very presence of the bags embodying those words perfectly.
I believe that the "beauty of craftsmanship" is incredibly strong here, a beauty that cannot be expressed by overused prefaces like "Japanese craftsmanship" or "Made in Japan."
And that philosophy of "Ichishin Nyukon" is common not only to PORTER but also to LUGGAGE LABEL.
Actually, LUGGAGE LABEL, which we will introduce at this event, debuted as a brand in 1984.
In other words, it's a brand that has been around for over 40 years.
Generally, select shops like ours are responsible for promoting talented people among the world's wonderful brands who are still lesser known or have less experience.
That's why I think things like "first landing in Japan" or "world limited to X stores" tend to be featured, and it's absolutely necessary for new flag bearers to emerge for the next generation.
And stores that support them are also absolutely necessary.
In that sense, undertaking a new initiative with a veteran brand like LUGGAGE LABEL might be somewhat unusual, but we believe that the time has come for us to properly focus on this again.
In other words, while we respect the fact that we are drawn to innovative and rare items, we believe that if we get caught in a dichotomy of dismissing widely known brands and groups as familiar, we might lose sight of truly valuable things.
To carefully pass on the baton that Yoshida & Co., Ltd., a legend in Japan's bag industry, has carried for 90 years to the next generation, we shouldn't be swayed by "first time in Japan" that seems catchy in today's information-overloaded world. Instead, we should pay proper attention again to the "legends" that have already permeated our everyday lives. This is almost a kind of warning.
Well, in short,
"Everyone might think they know Yoshida Kaban, but they're even more amazing."
That's the story.
I'm confident that once you learn its history and see the real thing, you'll understand. This team is doing incredibly cool things.
No, not just doing, but continuing to do.
For 90 years.
And they have breathed new life into LUGGAGE LABEL, which has been around for 40 years.
In other words, this LUGGAGE LABEL represents "Yoshida Kaban, a brand recognized globally, once again engaging with Japan."
"OLDNEW" with persimmon tannin dyeing and kuradye (walnut dye)
"TRUE BLUE" made with natural indigo dyeing, returning to the earth
"FILAMENT," using bamboo, which has been closely tied to Japanese life since ancient times
The LUGGAGE LABEL we are introducing this time consists of these three series.
We hope to introduce the lineup within each series starting around Tuesday.
Please look forward to it.