40 | A History of Glassware: Japanese Glass Manufacturers and Handcrafted Glass Factories 10

Hello everyone 🎵

Every year around this time, I enjoy touring sake breweries with my sake-loving friends. The reason is that this is the off-peak season for travel, and there's a super-value ticket called the "Otona no Kyujitsu Pass" (Adult's Holiday Pass) released during this period. There's a membership requirement of being 50 or older, but once you're a member, you can get an amazing deal of 4 days of unlimited rides, including all Shinkansen lines within the JR East Japan section, for 15,270 yen, about four times a year.

This time, I rode nearly 50,000 yen worth of trains: Ueno ⇒ Akita ⇒ Morioka ⇒ Shin-Aomori ⇒ Aomori ⇒ Hirosaki ⇒ Gono Line ⇒ Noshiro ⇒ Hachirogata ⇒ Akita ⇒ Ueno. I highly recommend it! You'll feel like you're getting the best deal as you get older ♪

In 2002 (Heisei 14), Sasaki Glass and Toyo Glass, essentially rivals, merged due to a strange turn of events, including the bankruptcy of Sasaki Glass and Toyo Seikan Group's commitment to tableware. The "Houseware Division of Toyo Glass Co., Ltd." and "Sasaki Glass Co., Ltd." integrated to become "Toyo-Sasaki Glass Co., Ltd." A new factory, the "Toyo-Sasaki Glass Chiba Factory," was completed in Yachiyo City, Chiba Prefecture, boasting both state-of-the-art automation facilities and a handmade division.

While the integration involved negative aspects such as restructuring and consolidation of some products, it ensured the smooth production of glasses, and the continuation of Sasaki Glass's technology, design, and marketing. This was good news for the glass industry, consumers, and clients alike.

In 2007 (Heisei 19), they developed and commercialized "Fine Crystal," a new lead-free, environmentally friendly crystal glass material. The following year, they released ion-strengthened (chemically strengthened glass) Fine Crystal. These products are patented in Japan.

"HS Hard Strong," Japan's first reinforced glass for tableware, inherited from Sasaki Glass and continuously sold, celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2017 (Heisei 29). Furthermore, "HS" products, which are a staple for commercial reinforced glass, have achieved a sales record of approximately 800 million units since their launch. I believe "HS Hard Strong" is the only glass series in Japan that has been sold continuously for 50 years and achieved sales of 800 million units.

Subsequently, during a period of economic stagnation and then deflation, the weight of low-priced products increased, and sales to 100-yen shops expanded, leading to mass sales. As a result, performance gradually deteriorated. One of the two automated kilns was shut down, reducing production volume. In addition, some handmade glass production, which had continued for generations, was halted, and the number of craftsmen was reduced.

As a result, the transfer of skills from craftsmen became impossible, and the production of high-quality glasses with advanced technical capabilities became difficult. This made it challenging to meet the demands of an increasingly sophisticated market, leading to stagnant sales and a further reduction in production lines. I believe this has created a vicious cycle.

I believe that producing high-value-added, high-priced products is the way for Japanese factories to survive.

As a leader in the industry, I hope Toyo-Sasaki Glass will look to the future and strive for the传承 of handmade glass techniques and product development.