October 2010 Vol.21

LEATHER BAGS GALORE
desire for quality and function
BAGS A LA JAPONAIS present
in the Japanese market will only enforce& EC O - F R I EN D LY TO B O OT!

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BUSINESS THE JAPANESE WAY
M A N , W O M A N & C H I L D - S O M E T H I N G F O R E V E R YO N E

People of all ages do businessin one way or another, and with
the Japanese known as some ofthe hardest workers in the world;be they kids prepping for advancement
to schools that will start them out on thepath to future success, or those working
their way through university, perhaps gradschool, there will always be the need forbags capable and functional in this regard.
Kids have long used satchels to use theEnglish term and few reading this will haveany memory of a childhood sans leather
satchel somewhere down the line. Perhaps
into the teens the satchels of childhood
would be exchanged for briefcases andshoulder bags more akin to advancing inage, fashions of the day and / or the needfor more space in which to place books
than (generally) smaller satchels provide.
By the time adulthood comes aroundthe bags in question are more often thannot ‘business’ looking and aimed attransportation of books, files, and the like,to and from places of work, education,and residence.
Many high quality materials make theirway into bag production nowadays, fromthe synthetic to the natural, but it is mainlyin the latter of these two that Japanesemanufacturers prefer to use for bag
production - from the satchels used by kids
heading to elementary schools around thecountry, to the products used by millionsof businessmen and women to transportback and forth papers, files and of course
lunch boxes - excel, in the form of leather.
Leather is used throughout theJapanese bag production world, andnot all is black and brown as might besupposed of such a ‘staple’ use for theworld’s oldest material in as far as bags
go - for business or otherwise. Indeed,
as can be seen in the images, Japanesebags used for business come in a range offorms, capable of accommodating a wide
range of material volume(s).
Material wise, the leather used inJapan, imported or domestically bredincludes leather not only from cows as
most would imagine. Japanese leather also
includes that taken from alligators, pythonsand even lizards. These often make popularsouvenirs - with the correct paperwork
filled in - and are as hard-wearing as anyother form of leather, even if considerably
lighter when held. Even the Japanese formsof leather made from the hide of cowsthat is used in bag production - businessincluded - are themselves reduced inthickness and thus weight to ensure lighter,but still incredibly strong pieces for thosemaking the ultimate purchase in such
bags; lighter a consideration made by bag
producers in Japan to allow for generally
lighter frames in the Japanese bodyaccording to the Chairman of The Japan
Luggage Association (www.kaban.or.jp),
Shoichi Inose.
In the men’s leather business bags
range produced by many of the dedicatedbag makers in Japan the range is immense
but one style that never goes out is theso-called ‘tenchaku’ bags that have thezipper across the top of the bag - the ‘ten’refering to heaven or the ‘top’ of the bag,and ‘chaku’ the Japanese term for zipper.
The ladies leather range found in Japan isarguably bigger and this is nowhere moreevident in the styles and designs - fixturesand fittings, strap lengths and number ofpockets as well as the bags being designed
primarily for carrying in one hand, slung
across the body, perhaps on one shoulder- or just carried under the arm.
But that is leather through and through- as versatile a material as any other anda whole lot sturdier than most. Go withleather when selecting a business bag andyou will not go wrong.

hen on the lookout for a top
quality leather bag made inJapan, there is one thing above
all others that should be sought – themark of ‘Made in Japan’, the mark of realleather, and thus the mark guaranteed todown the road ensure satisfaction with the
product invested in.
The Japanese have long been
known as a people for whom quality andattention to detail matter a great deal.
In the manufacture of their bags they
are no different. One easy example of
the attention to detail seen in Japanese
produced bags can be seen in the 6, 7,
or 8 stitches used in every 3cm of leather
sealed in Japanese bags. These stitches
are changed to suit the products.
2010 has already, and will continue tosee, a range of events aimed at promoting
the use of leather in Japan at suchexclusive locations as Omotesando Hills,
not only in bag form but also in shoes anda great many other areas for The Japan
Leather Awards, and in October, 2010,
Award winning products are exhibited ata fair held in Paris, France.
With a multitude of criteria to workthrough, the best of Japan’s best, be theypros in the industry, or students of leather
work, will be pitted against each other to
see who will carry the torch of Japaneseleather into the next 12 months.
These awards coupled with the ever

‘MADE IN JAPAN’L

THE BAG’S MARK OFA U T H E N T I C L E AT H E Reather goods in Japan, large orsmall are made to some of thehighest standards in the world.
As such, for those unaware of how
to best check the country of origin andauthenticity of a given piece, the pros in
the industry have taken the strain out ofmaking sure you get a quality piece - withaccompanying peace of mind; that you
are getting value for money and the item
itself is guaranteed leather.
Anywhere the accompanying tag(see image) is found, those making thepurchase can rest assured the bag inquestion is genuine
leather and this tag(see image) shows
the product is madein Japan. Thesetags are issued by
The Japan Luggage
Association.

the need to grow with the times, andthe Japan Leather and Leather Goods
Industries Association has taken a recent
step in this direction by introducing the2009, JAPAN ECO LEATHER Standard(see sidebar).
In doing so, the whole industry is taking
steps towards leading the eco-movementfrom the front in as far as leather goes,but for the simplest identifying marker
possible that will aid in recognizing a bag
as genuine leather and ‘made in Japan’,
look for the mark shown (direction); an
indication of quality and workmanship theJapanese and Japanese bag producers
rightfully pride themselves on.
Shop aware, and know you will get
quality whilst helping the environment
In 2009, the Japan Leather and Leather
Goods Industries Association settled on a
“JAPAN ECO LEATHER Standard”.
Leather goods carrying the Japan
Eco Leather mark are only made of leather
satisfying the requirements of Japan Eco
Leather Standard.

MAIN REQUIREMENTS• Genuine Leather• Leather manufactured by a tannery
controlling waste water, and solid
waste matter.
• No breaking of agreed limits on chemical
substances. (formaldehyde, heavy
metals, PCPs, forbidden azo dyes)
Full details of the Japan Eco Leather Standard:
www.jlia.or.jp/ (JP)ACE Hibiya StoreF

ounded in 1940, ACE has establisheditself as a world-class bag manufacturer
mainly producing travel and business bags.
ACE bags boast an extremely high quality of
product, which is maintained by performing
strict inspections of all their pieces at domestic
manufacturing plants. Together with theirsuitcases, ACE’s fine leather briefcases, also
enjoy high popularity.
ACE Hibiya made its grand opening in May
2010, as the brand’s flagship store. This modern
and stylish location is one of ACE’s major bases
from which they market their core original
brands, such as “ProtecA” and “ACEGENE.”
As well as the many business men andwomen that visit the store, ACE Hibiya is also
well prepared to serve non-Japanese customers
that visit from nearby hotels; one of theirservices being the use of China UnionPay, ACE
also runs the World Bag Museum in Asakusa –one of the world’s largest bag museums, withhundreds of bags from 50 nations around theworld. Free of charge, the museum has recently
added English-language text descriptions toenable non-Japanese visitors to further enjoy
the experience.

THE LEATHERNUMBERS GAME
& L E AT H E R A S A W E D D I N G G I F TOne aspect of the Japanese language
many visiting for a longer period,
regardless of where they are from,or indeed those opting to live in the country
soon become aware of once they havebeen around the Japanese language fora while is the use of ‘double’ sometimes‘triple’ readings of certain terms when put
on paper. This is a concept particularly athome in the reading of numbers, and can atfirst be somewhat confusing for those new
to Japanese as a foreign tongue.
After a while though it does become
part and parcel of everyday comprehensionof the language and particularly theadvertising mindset in the islands – thealternate reading of ‘one’ (ichi) as ‘i’(sounding like ‘e’ in English), the reading
thereby of 11 as ‘ii’, and the abbreviation of‘seven’ (usually nana or shichi in the local
lingo) to ‘na’, meaning that the telephone
number 117 comes out as ‘iina’ – itself
another term for good or great in Japanese,
oftentimes with a sliver of envy added to thevoice of the speaker just for good measure.
The twisting of the language in thisregard happens all over, and the goodfolk behind the national leather businessin Japan have come up with their own
ingenious take on leather promotion with
November 3rd being designated いいレザ

C.O.U.

C.O.U. aims to provide customers witha place they can encounter various
concepts of values, different cultures andgoods in one spot. Together with their
original “WILDSWANS” brand, C.O.U also
sells various domestic brands’ leather
goods, and strives to promote the valueof leather products. Everything on salein their store is handmade by Japanese
craftsmen. Here you can purchasefunctional and intricately designed leather
bags for a reasonable price. Small leather
goods can be customized to suit yourtastes by choosing the type and colorof leather as well as the stitching color
from 14 variations. The products are all
durable and the longer you use them, thebetter they will become. Regardless of
how old the goods are, C.O.U. is willingto fix and repair them when possible. All
the distinctive signboards, the interior
and displays inside the Ginza store
were custom-made by a famous artist something you won’t discover until you
are inside being that it is actually quite aunique and exciting location.

October 2010 Vol.21

LEATHER BAGS GALOREーの日 – the いい the Japanese for ‘ii’ (11)and レザー the term for leather (and 03) thus emphasizing the date while の日 refers
to the day.
That the date is itself already a national
holiday (Culture Day – or Bunka-no-hi), andwas once the birthday of the much loved
Meiji Emperor who reigned from 1868 – 1912
in what was considered the most culturally
important reign of the past thousand
years in it opening Japan to the world andeffectively modernizing the nation, it is thus
perhaps the most apt day on the calendar
to celebrate a material – along with all the
associated campaigns that will be seen
come the cooling of days and the onset ofAutumn – as culturally defining across theglobe as leather.
Something old, something new,something borrowed, something blue.

SOMETHING LEATHER.

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ew anywhere will initially associate
leather with weddings, anniversaries ofthat big day and such. Many a ‘material’
deemed linked to wedding anniversaries
is known of, if not in detail in general formby most; silver (25 years), gold (50) – andperhaps even paper (just 1) the easiest
to remember.
But just how many reading this areaware of the worldwide preference forleather upon completion of a fixed numberof years of marital bliss?
Traditionally the system of offeringcertain gifts of certain materials originatedin the West (likely Germany and later the
UK and Commonwealth nations) but haslong been embraced in Japan. Interestingly
though, the UK and US do differ in someregards with leather the gift of choice on thethird anniversary in the UK, and formerly soin the USA.
Japanese too of late have offeredleather pieces large and small to celebrate
the married life of relative newly-weds on
the third anniversary, but in the modern US,
leather has been moved ’up’ to the ninth
anniversary and in the process has been
amended to ‘leather goods’ as opposed

to ‘leather’ outright – but any date withextra longevity is obviously something ofa compliment in that the longer you havebeen married in general, the more valuable
the material of which gifts are supposed tobe made, are.

HIDEO WAKAMATSU Jiyugaoka StoreKURACHIKA YOSHIDA Omotesando

LEO-MAKARAZUYAhe brand began as a bou tiquenear the Jardin du Luxembourg inParis, in 1989. The brand concept is
one of fusion of style, functionality andusability. Designer Hideo Wakamatsu
takes time to listen to the voices of
his customers in order to understandand then create exactly what they arewhat they are looking for. His will to be
involved in each and every process, fromdesign to crafting, and the importancehe places in creating “made in Japan”
products, are the major characteristicsof this brand. Stylish and functional, yetsimple but fashionable, their products
often appear in fashion magazines
home and abroad, and have many fansamong Japan's horde of celebrities.
That more than 20 of their bags have
won and are award-winning products
including Good Design Award is alsoof note, and another fact that solidifies
their value. Stores can be found in
Jiyugaoka, Shibuya, Tokyo, Europe,
the U.S.A., China, Hong Kong andSouth Korea.

venerable bag manufacturer establishedin 1935, with a corporate motto of“Hitohari Nyukon,” meaning, to make sure
you give it your all every single stitch. They putemphasis on material, parts, the sewing, andfunctionality when producing bags for theirbrands, “PORTER” and “LUGGAGE LABEL.”
Yoshida Bags are 100% made in Japan,
and the longer you use them the better they
become. Their wallets, backpacks, tote bagsand various other bags are very popular withyoung people, many of whom are regularcustomers. Of the several hundred pieces
they produce, some limited products havebecome extremely valuable. Likewise outside
Japan, where Yoshida Bags have drawn
the attention of the foreign media for manyreasons leading to many non-Japanese fans
who now value their products. Adjacent totheir shop in Omotesando, one of two directlyowned stores, with the other in Marunouchi,
is a hand-stitch workshop where, if lucky, you
can watch the production process. At these
two stores are limited items for sale that you
will find only here, so bag lovers be sure tostop by during your visit to Japan.

ounded in 1906, this long-established business with a history ofover 100 years is currently being run by
the fourth owner. From the very beginningthey have stuck to producing “Japanmade” goods, and have continued
support for Japanese craftsmen andmanufacturers. Thus, their goods arealmost wholly “made in Japan.” The store
is located in the old and historical districtof Jimbocho, with its many antiquarianbookstores. Once inside the store, filledwith a retro-flavored atmosphere, customers are overwhelmed by nearly one
thousand products that are laid out on
the shelves, from the lineup of casualbags such as backpacks and shoulder
bags, to the standard briefcases andother perennial favorites. There are also
some precious collectors’ items hidden
away among the goods, so if you arelucky you may be able to find that classic
bag you’d been looking for. Staff on
hand are well prepared to assist nonJapanese customers, including Chinesespeaking staff.

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Shoichi Inose - President of Inose

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Japan Leather and Leather Goods
Industries Associationwww.jlia.or.jp

Writer: Mark Buckton
Photographs: INOSE Co.,Ltd/Christopher Jue

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