STAFF

Ando

Joined the company in 2018, technical position, graduate of Tama Art University

I majored in textile design at art university, where I studied weaving, knitting, dyeing, and printing techniques. During my university years, I created original textiles with my own hands, so I thought I knew a little about textiles when I joined the company. However, once I started working here, I realized that I have to start from scratch. The so-called "works" I created during my university years and the "products" that are manufactured in the factory and sold to customers are different things, and I had to start from scratch to learn how to create attractive fabrics that can be used for clothing.
I have learned various things such as factory production, the techniques of setting up knitting machines, the properties of materials, dyeing, and processing, and I feel that I am finally starting to be able to "make fabric" on my own, albeit imperfectly. Fabric making involves a great many steps, so knowledge, skills, and experience in each step are essential to becoming proficient in fabric making. I realize that there are still many things I lack and many things I need to learn.
I will continue to learn with an insatiable curiosity so that I can create attractive fabrics and grow as a knitter.

Hayashi

Joined the company in 2021, technical position, graduate of Kyoto University of the Arts.

The other day, while organizing my belongings, I found a notebook I used during my first year at the company. It was a small notebook that I carried with me so I could write anything at once during work, and when I looked inside, I saw that I had jotted down even the smallest details, which made me smile at my past self and brought back a lot of nostalgia for three years ago.

My main job is setting up the circular knitting machine to knit raw material and knitting preparation, which involves working to knit raw material efficiently and without defects. However, even though it's just knitting, the way you set it up varies depending on the knitting structure and the characteristics of the machine, and the more I learn about the world of knitting, the more I encounter the difficulty of producing raw material without defects. When I work with my own hands and look at the finished raw material, I always feel a mix of excitement and anxiety, and when I manage to adjust it well, I can't help but smile. I still have a lot to learn, and I am constantly learning new things every day with the careful support of my seniors. Looking back at my old notebooks, I see a lot of confusing explanations that I only understood about 40% of, and I can't help but want to teach my past self from three years ago a lot of things. I find myself wanting to add more to my notebook, and I'm happy to realize that I've grown without even noticing.

My goal now is to acquire knowledge of dyeing and finishing processes so that I can clearly visualize the finished knitwear and its finished product state, and to build up more accurate knowledge and technical skills. I will stay focused and challenge myself every day so that my future self a year from now can look back at my current notes and feel how much I've grown.

Suganuma

Joined the company in 2012, Sales position, Graduate of Aichi University

I work in sales. My weekly routine is as follows: Mondays are for planning the week's work and preparing for sales meetings, followed by the sales meetings themselves. Tuesdays through Thursdays are for business trips to Tokyo and the Kansai region, where I give presentations and hold meetings with clients. Fridays are for returning to the office and completing assignments and tasks given to me by clients.


The most rewarding aspect of this job is considering what materials would be best suited to each client's taste and the season, making proposals that lead to new business, receiving referrals from clients, finding new clients myself, and visiting them to secure new business. I also enjoy being able to contribute to material development by listening to client requests, conducting my own market research, and offering suggestions during material development meetings, such as suggesting that it would be better to create a certain type of material. I want to
study more, gain more experience, and be able to make better proposals so that I can contribute more to the company's sales.

Yamanaka

Joined the company in 2019, technical position, graduate of Tama Art University.

I majored in textile design at university and joined the company because I wanted to work in fabric production. I work as a technician, and I'm in charge of fabric inspection management, which involves understanding the condition of raw fabrics and their shipping status, as well as inventory management of knitting needles.
Since around the summer of 2023, I've been put in charge of development, but it's been a continuous process of trial and error. I'm good at detailed work and steadily building things up step by step, but in fabric development, things often don't go as planned, and I frequently encounter tasks that I'm not good at, such as working on things that are outside my knowledge. I'm still learning, but I hope to acquire a lot of knowledge so that I can use it to create unique fabrics.

Kajiura

Joined the company in 2023, technical position, graduated from Nagoya Gakuin University.

I started my job search because I wanted to work in the clothing industry, and I was interested in joining this company because it makes fabrics for brands I know.
I joined with the intention of working in sales, but I am currently learning the basics in the factory. In the factory, I work operating the knitting machines that have been set up. When I first joined the company, I had no knowledge of the machines at all, and I would panic immediately when a problem occurred, but now I feel that I have grown as I am able to operate the machines by myself with a colleague who joined at the same time as me. However, although I have become somewhat familiar with the machines, I still know very little about fabrics and yarns, and I am learning new things little by little every day.
In the future, I would like to learn more about machines and fabrics while working in the factory, and I would like to be able to create fabrics that I think are good and propose the fabrics that we have created to various brands.

Sakashita

Joined the company in 2023, technical position, graduate of Toyama University.

I work in knitting. My job is to keep the circular knitting machine running. I splice broken yarns, replace broken needles, and cut out raw fabric from the machine.

To be honest, I still don't really understand the intricacies of knitting. The differences between different types of yarn? The differences between different circular knitting structure? I think I probably only understand about 10% of what kind of characteristics the fabrics we produce have, or how the fabrics are knitted. I
 just gaze at the circular knitting machine and think things like, "Using this yarn makes something smooth," or "That raw fabric and the yarn used in that fabric are different, but somehow they look similar." When I went back to my hometown, I went to a shopping mall with my family. I found clothes made with fabric that our company makes in one of the stores there, and I was a little happy that I could tell my family that the fabric was made by our company. In the future, I would like to be able to explain what kind of characteristics the fabric has and how it is knitted. Furthermore, I'd like to be able to brag to my family about how I developed this fabric and the hardships I went through to create it. To do that, I feel I need to acquire a lot more knowledge. It seems like a long road ahead. As I write this, I realize that I shouldn't be saying things like, "I thought the raw fabric was smooth," or "I'm gazing at the circular knitting machine."

Nishiyama

Joined the company in 2022, technical position, graduated from Nagoya University of Arts and Sciences.

Currently, I'm working to ensure that the circular knitting machines in the factory can achieve their target production utilization rate by resolving machine problems and preparing the yarn to be used next in advance to prevent the machines from stopping. I've also gradually become involved in overhauling the circular knitting machines, changing the machine's structure for knitting the next fabric, and setting it up. I started from a point where I couldn't see any flaws in the fine yarn, needles, or raw fabric. When the machines stopped or there were problems that caused flaws in the knitted fabric, I couldn't understand the mechanism at all, and I had many challenges. With the support of those around me, I feel that I'm gradually being able to overcome these challenges. I studied textiles when I was a student, but now that I'm actually working in the field, I realize every day that there's so much I don't know.

In the future, I want to learn more about textiles so that I can set up the machines on my own and create new things myself, so I'm studying again and challenging myself to get a textile certification. I want to improve my skills and contribute to the company.

Watanabe

Joined the company in 2013, technical position, graduated from Chubu University.

I primarily work as a factory engineer and production manager. I constantly think about what improvements can be made and how people should be allocated to increase productivity while minimizing losses. Many of the factory staff are in their 20s, so I make an effort to explain things clearly to younger colleagues with less experience and I am also focusing on training young talent. Furthermore, to improve my own skills, I want to actively engage with new technologies and knowledge to broaden my technical capabilities.

Nasu

Joined the company in 2014, Sales position, Graduate of Shinshu University

When I first joined the company, I spent two years studying fabric structures in a workshop with circular knitting machines, and then began sales activities with apparel manufacturers, our clients. While my experience in production has allowed me to explain fabrics to customers, I still feel I'm lacking in proposing materials that truly meet their needs.

Currently, I'm involved in creating not only fabrics but also finished products (clothing), and in this environment, I'm naturally acquiring knowledge about clothing and gradually learning about the materials and trends our customers are looking for. I'm also involved in the company's recruitment activities, speaking to students at company information sessions held at schools. I'm acutely aware of the difficulty of communicating our company to a diverse group of students.
Currently, I'm also working on obtaining patents for new technologies. I've come to understand the importance of explaining new technologies to the public, and I believe that developing solutions to current problems and creating products that people wish existed is the true development that leads to patent acquisition.
In the future, I aspire to become a professional in the upstream and midstream of the textile industry, creating materials, and also to develop the ability to view products as a material expert in the downstream sector.
Furthermore, I want to be involved in purchasing products as merchandise, and use my ability to propose fabrics and products to help revitalize the industry.