The history of Japan's umbrella industry, beginning at the end of the Edo period

1868 (first year of the Meiji era)

Senjoko Sakamoto Shoten was one of the first to introduce and begin selling imported umbrellas, a product of Western culture.

Senjoka Sakamoto Shoten (from "Tokyo Photo Album")

1872 (Meiji 5)

Senjoko Sakamoto Shoten, with its experience selling imported umbrellas, improved the 400-year-old Koshu-ori Kai silk fabric into umbrella fabric and created the first Japanese-made umbrellas using disassembled parts from imported umbrellas. In the same year, Uemura Hikojiro, who was dealing in imported goods, also began selling imported umbrellas. After that, he imported umbrella parts from the UK and created umbrellas using Koshu-ori Kai silk.

1887 (20th year of the Meiji era)

Mr. Toshichi Sakamoto, the sixth generation owner of Senjoko Sakamoto Shoten, returned to Japan in 1891 after spending five years in Paris, France researching umbrella manufacturing methods and trends.

1890 (23rd year of the Meiji era)

This was the year that it became possible to harden the steel material used for umbrella ribs, marking the beginning of 100% domestic production of Western-style umbrellas.

A Western-style umbrella shop in the mid-Meiji period (from "The History of Western-style Umbrella Shawls")

Imported Western umbrellas from the Rokumeikan period (from "The History of Western Umbrella Shawls")

1894 (27th year of the Meiji era)

For the silver wedding anniversary of Emperor Meiji, the Tokyo Umbrella Trade Association presented a gentleman's umbrella made by Mr. Yushichi Sakamoto of Senjoko for the Emperor, and a ladies' umbrella made by umbrella merchant Mr. Hikojiro Uemura for the Empress. The high level of technology and design expression techniques of the time resulted in high quality products that were comparable to imported umbrellas, and are still used today.

1895 (28th year of the Meiji era)

Torakichi Kono, a Western-style umbrella rib merchant, succeeded in manufacturing the U-shaped grooved rib, which had been developed by the British company Fox, in 1868. This marked the 100% domestic production of Western-style umbrella ribs, and the basic structure and manufacturing method are still used today.

1899 (Meiji 32)

Furthermore, Torakichi Kono succeeded in bending Swedish rolled steel ribbon into a U-shape and hardening it. Nostalgic silk umbrellas from the late Meiji period made from umbrella ribs manufactured at that time can be seen at the Komiya Shoten shop in Higashi-Nihonbashi.

Umbrella from the Meiji period, made with frames made by Torakichi Kono. Owned by Komiya Shoten

Amber-rimmed lace parasols that were popular in the late Meiji period (from "The History and Directory of Japanese Western Umbrellas")

Meiji Period Men's Umbrella (Mitsukoshi Times, 1911)

1912 (Taisho 1)

The Taisho period was a time when new arts, such as literature, painting, music, and theater, influenced by Western culture, spread and flourished. In the field of Western umbrellas, it was also a time when parasols were valued as traditional crafts. In terms of fabrics, silk woven or dyed fabrics used for kimonos were combined with lace and embroidery that made use of Western techniques, and umbrella handles were often made by skilled craftsmen using ivory or tortoiseshell carvings, lacquerware, mother-of-pearl inlay, engraving, and other intricate craftsmanship.

Western-style umbrellas from the Taisho period (Mitsukoshi Times, 1913)

A lace-finished parasol from around 1921 (From "The History and Directory of Japanese Western Umbrellas")

An ivory, mother-of-pearl, and carved parasol handle from the early Taisho period (from "The History and Directory of Japanese Western Umbrellas")

1926 (First year of the Showa era)

The Showa era was a time when women's participation in society increased and their opportunities to play an active role began to take root. It was also a time when the production of Western-style umbrellas expanded and they grew into a popular export item.
In the mid-Showa period, the development of folding bones progressed, and the two-stage central rod hook-and-loop type, the compact three-stage central rod type, and furthermore, riding on the trend toward smaller and lighter sizes, multi-stage mini bones appeared.

An unraveled woven umbrella for all weather use from the early Showa period (From "The History and Directory of Japanese Western Umbrellas")

1930 (Showa 5)

The founder of Komiya Shoten, Takamasa Komiya, started out manufacturing and selling umbrellas in Hamacho, Chuo Ward, Tokyo, using narrow-width yarn-dyed Kai silk, a fabric for umbrellas that has been woven in his hometown of Yamanashi since the beginning of the Meiji era, and the business is still in operation today.

1941 (Showa 16)

As Japan entered into the Pacific War with the United States and Britain, the Western-style umbrella industry was forced to shrink due to the wartime control orders of 1943, with companies merging and consolidating or going out of business.

1945 (Showa 20)

Japan ended the war with its unconditional surrender, and the umbrella industry also restarted after the war and began new activities.

1949 (Showa 24)

The development of this umbrella was based on the German Knirpuss folding umbrella with a sliding pole, and the product was produced. In the same year, the Umbrella Shawl Industry Cooperative was established, and it continues to this day.

1951 (Showa 26)

As folding umbrellas improved, a hook-and-loop fastener was developed to fasten the tip and base ribs together using grooved metal in the base ribs. This is the prototype of the current Japanese-style folding umbrella.

1953 (Showa 28)

The appearance of highly waterproof, low-cost nylon fabric has led to a dramatic increase in demand for folding umbrellas.

1954 (Showa 29)

Folding has been further improved, and models now have springs built into the main rib, allowing the tip and main ribs to be opened and closed freely.

1960 (Showa 35)

Domestic sales of long umbrellas, which had been manufactured exclusively for export, began. In the same year, the "Tetoron" trademark, a strong polyester fabric with stable quality, was developed, and it was around this time that the foundation of today's Western-style umbrella industry was established.

1963 (Showa 38)

The Japan Umbrella Promotion Council (JUPA) was established by a group of volunteer umbrella manufacturers from across the country and continues to exist to this day.

1964 (Showa 39)

Eighteen years after the war, the Olympic Games were held for the first time in Tokyo, Japan, joining the world community.

1965 (Showa 40)

The Mainichi Shimbun (September 2, 1966 edition) reported that Japan achieved the triple crown of being the world's number one in production (43.2 million umbrellas), number one in consumption (32.4 million umbrellas), and number one in exports (10.28 million umbrellas). Around this time, folding umbrellas became smaller, and the pole was improved from two sections to a compact three-section type. In addition, aluminum alloy was used for the pole and ribs, riding the wave of smaller and lighter umbrellas, and mini umbrellas were sold, and the basic types of umbrellas were complete.

1970 (Showa 45)

The Osaka World Expo was held, symbolized by artist Taro Okamoto's Tower of the Sun, and saw the introduction of long umbrellas that could be opened and closed by operating the handle, known as Expo umbrellas.

1972 (Showa 47)

Following the launch of Japan's first licensed brand umbrellas with the French haute couture brand Pierre Cardin, umbrellas from famous brands such as Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Dior, and Nina Ricci are now sold at famous department stores and specialty stores.

1980 (Showa 55)

During this time, ready-to-wear brands such as Sonia Rykiel, Emmanuel Kahn, and Kenzo Takada were replaced by house brands such as Burberry, Daks, and Acascutum, and licensed brands were expanded to DC brands, which became a huge hit. Under the guidance of those with advanced production techniques and sensibilities, the production base was also moved to Korea and then to Taiwan.

1989 (Heisei 1)

This was the time when the Showa Emperor System was replaced by the Heisei Emperor System, which was a symbol of the country. It was also the time when the main production base for Western umbrellas was shifting from Taiwan to China.

1990 (Heisei 2)

Although the bubble economy of the high economic growth period has started to burst, the import volume from China, the main production base, has been stable, maintaining an annual figure of around 120 million units. The background to China's economic growth, which has been driven by the manufacturing industry, is the problem of environmental pollution that has continued for many years. In Japan, the problem of disposable transparent polyvinyl chloride umbrellas has also become a major social issue due to pollution issues.

2009 (Heisei 21)

In the same year, the umbrella industry also developed a new product called the "Ecological Umbrella," an environmentally friendly umbrella whose parts could be easily disassembled and classified into those that could be incinerated and those that could be reused. However, because it was weak against wind pressure, it did not bear fruit and naturally disappeared.

2010 (Heisei 22)

China, the world's manufacturing factory whose gross domestic product (GDP) has grown by double digits, has also begun to slow down since around 2008, the year of the Beijing Olympics. The umbrella manufacturing factory operating in the special economic zone was also beginning to find it difficult to maintain stable production due to rising labor costs and labor shortages.

2016 (Heisei 28)

By this time, China's GDP was also finding it difficult to maintain 7%, with the end-of-year results reporting an actual figure of 6.7%. Integrated umbrella production factories have been subdivided into factories for each process and have shrunk to about one-tenth of their peak size. Already, production bases for low-cost transparent polyvinyl chloride umbrellas have begun to move from China to Cambodia. Additionally, both the quantity and value of exports of umbrellas from China to Japan have decreased by about 20% compared to the previous year.

2017 (Heisei 29)

With the international Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo just three years away, the number of tourists from overseas is increasing year by year, and the purpose of tourism is changing dramatically. People, including Japanese people, are showing a new interest in experiencing Japan's nature, history, and traditional culture, as well as in handmade traditional crafts, including Japanese umbrellas.

2018 (Heisei 30)

Tokyo Umbrellas, which have inherited nearly 150 years of history and traditional techniques, have been certified as a "Tokyo Traditional Craft." Currently, the production of umbrellas made in Japan, including Tokyo Umbrellas, is about 660,000, half the number produced in fiscal 2008. However, due to the aging of craftsmen, training successors and reviewing the procurement network for materials necessary for product processing are major issues.

"Tokyo Umbrella" certified as a traditional craft of Tokyo. Komiya Shoten's silk Koshu weave with stripes on the inside

2019 (Heisei 31)

Eight craftsmen who have been making Tokyo umbrellas for many years, using techniques that have been passed down through the ages and nurtured by the climate and history of Tokyo, have been certified as "Tokyo Traditional Craftsmen." From Komiya Shoten, two skilled craftsmen, Shoichi Oguni and Katsumi Sugasawa, have been certified and are working hard every day to make umbrellas with advanced techniques and to train successors.

2020 (Heisei 32)

Komiya Shoten will create the "Nostalgic Version of the Rokumei Ombre" based on the Western parasols made by Senjoko in the Meiji era. By bringing together the skills of artisans from various fields, the company will recreate the beautiful parasols of that time.