Why Japan Gatekeeps Its Factories from the World

Japan is known to produce some of the highest quality products in the world. They still use traditional manufacturing techniques that were established hundreds of years ago. Local brands like Visvim, CDG, Issey Miyake, Capital, and the Real McCoys have been able to develop an international presence due to the quality of their goods. こっちは八本って言われる生地の。But when brands from outside attempt to take advantage of Japan's incredible craftsmanship, They really struggle to find someone willing to make their products. At least I did. 2 months prior to visiting Japan, I reached out to 96 factories with an enticing project budget and tech pack. Of those 96 emails I sent out, I only got one response, and that response, in an extremely polite way, said, You can't come visit our factory. So why aren't factories interested in dealing with overseas clients? After spending 4 months in Japan and receiving countless rejections, I was finally privileged enough to get a rare glimpse into the world of Japanese manufacturing. I'm going to show you a bunch of factories in Japan that are completely closed off to the public and have never been filmed before. We were even able to interview the factory owners to better understand why Japan gatekeeps its factories from the rest of the world.

Hello.

To better understand the sophisticated techniques developed today, we need to look back to post-World War II Japan. From the late 1950s to the 1980s, Japan experienced a major economic boom during which companies like Toyota, Honda, Sony, Panasonic, and Toshiba gained international recognition for their innovative products, high-quality manufacturing, and efficient production systems. This era is often known as the economic miracle. The Japanese government implemented various policies and initiatives to support manufacturing industries, such as providing subsidies, investing in infrastructure, and promoting export-oriented production. However, it's worth noting that in the late 1990s, Japan faced economic challenges, including an asset bubble burst and a prolonged period of economic stagnation.

In Japan, last 30 years, we losing the real market compared with our bubble time in Japan back in the '70s, '80s. So they forgot how to compete with, you know, global market from Japan to outside.

Nevertheless, Japanese manufacturing continues to be influential and globally competitive in various sectors, and Japan remains one of the world's leading manufacturing nations. The economic miracle gave birth to some of Japan's most sophisticated factories and craftspeople. Established in 1992, Japan Blue has the widest fabric selection in a Japanese showroom that I've ever seen, and the fabric variety and quality is very hard to top. They made me sign an NDA, but what I can say is that they produce for almost every large fashion house in the world.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

A Leather is an independent leather clothing and goods brand producing some of the highest quality products I have ever seen in Japan. Everything is made by hand, and they actually made a beautiful brown suede skirt right in front of me. Okay,すごい。 Beau Geste is one of these behind-the-scenes factories that no one knows about but plays a pivotal role In producing for Japanese brands.

ま ず その う ち の 会 社 も そんな 大 き な 会 社 では ない ので、 その まあ 新 しく まあ 海 外 の お まあ お 客 様 に 繋 が って いく まあ い ろ んな 意 味 で その 労 力 的 に 今 ちょっと 手 が 回 って ない かな っていう 感じ です。 まあ でも ゆ く ゆ く は あの まあ それ が でき た ら いい かな と思 って ます けど。 Real McC oy 's is my favorite Japanese brand, and visiting their facilities in Kobe further reinforced that.

I had the absolute pleasure to meet Kento and became closer friends with him.

Almost every aspect is custom-made to the extreme. We start from the yarn, we even suggest the spinning method.

We—

I mean, it goes very deep. We take every step seriously, and it needs to be sustainable in a way that is healthy on both sides, which is unfortunately something you don't really see across the board.

Yamazaki is a circular knitting mill that Deeply broadened my perspective on fabric development. His mill is developing some of the most elegant fabrics I have ever touched.

This fabric is paper.

It's made out of paper. Paper.

That is insane. Washi.

Washi.

Washi hakupan.

Nimi specializes in weaving narrow fabrics. They have one of the widest ranges of machinery I've seen in Japan. This is just a reproduction of a vintage blanket we have from the 1930s. And this is also, これも flame にたてのね。And of course, everything they make is beautiful, by the way. Yoshi is responsible for exposing many niche Japanese brands and factories to the European market. Jack furthers Yoshi's marketing efforts with his great ideas. These two became close friends during my time in Japan and opened up many doors to factories.

I've been very lucky to be let into a lot of factory spaces and be able to see very intimately how these, you know, basically works of art are made. A lot of the old ways of making things is preserved only here. But, you know, an email won't cut it, basically. So I think if you're really serious about working with manufacturers in Japan especially, showing face and being present is extremely important. And I think that that builds a stronger level of respect.

Kan ek is the most talented denim maker I have ever met, and the founder of El Kan ek. He made a pair of jeans from start to finish for my friend Will, and we grew really close with him and his assistant Sh ina during our time in Japan.

長 く 行 き たい な っていう。 そう ですね。 今 後 どう な って いく か も 見て いき たい し、 百 二 十 歳 にな った 時 に エ ル カ ネ ック が こう。 ど う な って いる か という 状 況 も 見て お き たい という の が あります ね。 や っぱ り 気 持 ち の 持 ち 方 次 第 だ と思います ね。 その 自 分 が もう 年 老 いた な という 感 思 って た ら、 や っぱ その それ な り に 年 老 いた 体 に も な って いく でしょう し、 まあ ね 自 分 が まだ まだ。 頑張れるぞっていう気持ちを持っていれば、体も自然とこう元気でいられるかなと思います。岡本テクスタイル is an Okayama-based denim manufacturer providing fabric for jeans all over the country.

We made a pit stop at his facilities in our video with Kanek, where he made a pair of jeans from start to finish. Yoshikawa is a talented freelance patternmaker who works with many influential brands throughout Japan. This is an aging sample, and you can see that the denim actually has a full rainbow effect as it ages. So Japan is very expert in creating denims that age over time to create a completely different look. Kanek was kind enough to introduce me to Tada and his facility's Tadanit. Everyone working in the factory is much older and has developed a very specific skill attributed to one section of the small factory. These machine operators are at the top of their game. The consistent theme I noticed throughout these factories was that the workers were much older. In most cultures, the saying follows that 10,000 hours is enough to perfect a skill. However, in Japan, the notion is that mastering your craft requires at least 60,000 hours, the equivalent of study and practice for. 8 hours a day, 240 days a year, for over 30 years. Upon mastering your craft, you achieve status as takumi, meaning a craftsperson who is unrivaled in their particular field of expertise. Since factories hold themselves up to a really high standard, most of the workers are takumi and therefore much older. But it's not just factories. In fact, Japan is home to the oldest population in the world. This presents a significant challenge for the manufacturing industry as it grapples with a shortage of skilled workers. Many traditional workers in factories are older and nearing retirement, with few younger individuals trained to take their place. This demographic shift is creating a knowledge gap where valuable skills and expertise accumulated over decades risk being lost. The absence of a new generation to inherit these skills poses obstacles to maintaining the high standards of Japanese manufacturing. Many of these workers are beginning to retire, and their highly specialized skills are exclusive to them. This means that certain beautiful traditional techniques known by very few will soon go extinct.

この 技 術 を 残 した い っていう ので、 その レ ー ザ ー、 レ ー ザ ー の 放 射 の 技 術 を ね、 残 した い。 で それで レ ー ザ ー オ ン リ ーブ ラ ンド と して レ ー ザ ー だけ を や る ブ ラ ンド、 要 は 年 間 通 して レ ー ザ ー の 放 射 要 は 生 産 を 上 げ て いく っていう ブ ラ ンド を。 I think my generation still has somewhat of a familiarity to this culture.

There's definitely a generation that's younger than me that has never experienced that, and nobody knows what the outcome is going to be.

う ん。 で、 安 定 的 に 年 間 と して 僕 ら その 目 標 と して は その 生 産 を して いく っていう 目 標 が ある ので、 そう する と 法 制 の 法 制 の 現 場 っていう のは その 人 は 人 を 抱 え や す い し っていう の を 解 決 した い と思 って この ブ ラ ンド 立 ち 上 げ ました。 Since processes are highly metic ulous, it takes much longer to develop a product.

I typically budget nine to twelve months to produce a collection in other parts of Asia, Europe, or North America. But in Japan, I have to budget at least 18 months, and that's with a really strong relationship.

Normally, Japanese people, the way of thinking is well prepared for something happen, any like, you know, the risk, right? Risk hedge. So they prepare a lot deeply, perfectly. That's the point we work in.

Factories have extremely low capacity, and they are only shrinking as workers retire. Skills become extinct, and resources become more scarce. Fact ories refuse to put out low quality products, and therefore have to train their staff for a very long time before skills are up to par.

の 確 保 じゃない ですか ね。 自 分 た ち が 安 定 した 生 産 が でき る ため の 確 保。 だから 世 に た 競 合 会 社 が お って、 あ ただ 三 点 五 出 る ん や な う ち も ほ な お願い し よう って 言 わ れる の も。 う ち と して は 辛 かな なん て 思 う し。 ただ さん が 忙 しく なる と、 その ず っと お願い して た ところ が こう 入 れ れ なく な、 仕 事 でき なく な って きた り した ら、 自 分 た ち の 生 産 が こう 供 給 さ れ なく なる っていう 感じ だ と思います よね。 どう 説 明 した ら いい かな。 K ent explains that he trains his workers rigor ously for eighteen months.

before they are allowed to make a jacket that will be sold in his stores.

We haven't figured out a way to scale, and maybe that is the reason why Japan is so special and why it is so different and why we can create things that other people can't, because we're patient enough to bear with those under-optimized situations. If a foreign company does come here and try to work, it's going to be very challenging to understand that, I think, you know, and I think understanding that is Is probably the first step, and then the second step is I don't know.

What do Japanese value in a partnership? Partnership関係において日本人が大切にしていることは関係性。うん信頼じゃないですかね。Trust. Can you trust people from outside of Japan? 日本以外の人を知りたい。Japan is extremely old school in their manner of doing business. Unlike most factories in the world, you almost always have to meet them in person if you would like to do business with them. They operate under what I like to call the handshake business model.

But what's more is that you cannot simply reach out to the factory and go visit.工場今まで働いてきた中で知り合った人たちとか。 のコネクションで紹介してもらったりしてあの工場にお願いしたりしています。 Normally Japanese factories are working with some middle agency, not big trading company like me or like a personally middle agency.

You need what is called a fixer to set the first meeting. A fixer is a third party that knows both you and a reputable contact at the factory. What's your name?

Yoshikawa Koji.

What do you do for a living?仕事はパターンなあの型紙。Do you also connect people with factories?

Will.はい。どうもどうも。コネクトします。Yes, yes.

Okay.

By introducing you to the factory, the fixer is not only vouching for you but putting their reputation on the line.

Let's take payment, for example. You get a huge order from A foreign company based off of a handshake culture. How are you gonna trust that guy to make your, your, that payment, right? So a factory would like to, I guess, hedge that risk by putting someone in between, you know, preferably a Japanese guy that understands your whole culture.

You become the representative of the fixer and are at risk of sabotaging their relationships with the factory. They will either take you out for a meal or have tea with you prior to visiting the facilities. And this is pretty standard practice for most factories in the world. There's pretty much a 100% chance that they do not speak any language outside of Japanese, and this will be a constant barrier in Japan. It will be incredibly challenging to get by without either learning a bit of Japanese or having a strong bilingual contact or a translator. The factories are already at capacity and rather prioritize a client they can easily communicate with. Since my Japanese is minimal, some owners insisted that I could only do business if I communicated through our fixer.

No, we don't do that.

We don't do that. This is after meeting with them, providing them with gifts, and leaving a great impression, just to be clear. Here's the good part: the factory owners unanimously concluded that Japan is in trouble if they don't take on overseas I think companies, Japanese factories should—

there's a lot of things, 80% of what they do, I don't think they should change because that's why it exists and that's why it's so special. But the communication part should definitely be looked at.

Very few Japanese brands are able to afford the exorbitant production rates, and prices are only going up. In fact, many Japanese factories have always been open to working overseas. The issue is that they do not market themselves in such a way.

日本 の その 工 場 とか 服 を 作 る 工 場 とか 生 地 屋 さん とか 海 外 から の 競 争 な す で 生 き 残 れ ます か？ あ、 生 き 残 れない と思います。 はい。 実 際 に え っと 日本 国 内 だけ の 消 費 って 結 構 や っぱ り 厳 しい もの が あ って、 え っと 日本 で 売 れて る ブ ラ ンド さん っていう の も 結 構 海 外 進 出 して る あの。 ブ ラ ンド さん が 結 構 ほ と ん ど なん で、 あの 日本 国 内 だけ っていう 小 さ な 単 位 で 見 る と 結 構 厳 しい と思います。 なん で よ り その 海 外 に あの 販 売 して いく だ った り とか、 まあ え っと 一 サ プ ライ ヤ ー と して は 海 外 から の お 客 さん の え っと 仕 事 っていう の を も ら って い か ない と な かな か 厳 しい ん じゃない かな と は 思 います。 In fact, for the most part, they do not market themselves at all.

Bujest, which produces for renowned names like CDG and Yoji Yamamoto, does not have any website at all.

Ma, Nihonjin ga moto open ni nattaiku beki ya to omimasu koro ne.

Kaigai kara kaigai ga.

Ma, Nihon ga kaaru beki kana to.

But do you think Japan will ever change?

Um, kaiteikanae to dame.

From a factory standpoint, they need to modernize. They need decent websites that clearly show their capabilities.

And they need to be in English.

日本人はこう白黒はっきりさせる、そうそういうところでうまく伝わらなかったりする。And lastly, there needs to be more people like Yoshi and Jack who understand both Japanese and global markets.

Honestly, in Japan, people are very open, very open to you know meeting with people from all around the world and showing them these incredible processes and these incredible things that they make. Not only is it is it possible, but In fact, if you just act very sincerely, it's, it's very smooth and totally easy process.

Yoshi and Jack advertise the factory's potential to the world outside of Japan. But the solution isn't only on the factory side. Overseas clients need to make an effort too. My greatest takeaways are as follows. Business is done in person in Japan. It is essentially impossible to work with these factories otherwise, as their business practices are very old school. So if you want to make products in Japan, come to Japan. Plus, the people here are so nice. Be extremely polite. This means being 15 minutes early when someone is meeting you, because in Japan they are extremely punctual. It also means bringing gifts for factories and fixers, bowing when you say hello or showing thankfulness, and speaking at a lower volume. Be patient. Great things take a long time. Production is much slower in Japan than most places. But it's very rewarding. I am so grateful to have met all these factory owners and learned how Takumi makes the best products in the world. As we look into Japan's factories, we discover a fascinating world of tradition, craftsmanship, and untapped potential. Foreign brands face challenges in accessing Japanese manufacturing, but there is hope for change. The aging population and limited production capacity in Japan are real concerns. However, some factories are breaking free from tradition and embracing the global stage. The future lies in the hands of factory owners, foreign entrepreneurs, and even you. Will the gatekeeping continue, or will the doors open wide for the world to witness Japan's craftsmanship? The future is waiting to be discovered. Thank you so much for watching. I'm out. Peace. Thank you.