“It’s amazing what humans have created…….”
Said Jujiro Matsuda, when he saw a large amusement park called “Luna Park,” which opened in 1912 in Shinsekai (lit. “New World”), a neighborhood located in downtown Osaka. During a special event held as part of the opening celebration, a fire truck transported from the United States came to the park and sprayed water high up into the air, astonishing visitors. It must have been an extremely impressive sight for Jujiro, who had always been eager to understand the structure of all moving objects since he was a child. “We are on the brink of entering the era of automobiles…” he said to employees stood by his side, as he watched the show unfold.
Around that time, Jujiro was just running a small machine shop that manufactured the exclusive patented Matsuda Pump he had invented. Nevertheless, it was not long before he purchased an automobile and started driving it around, although he appeared to take more pleasure in studying the vehicle as a machine, rather than actually driving it. At the time, cars were luxury goods that ordinary people could not afford. Despite this, Jujiro, as an avid entrepreneur, made up his mind that someday he himself would produce cars, with the strong belief that automobiles would become the products to symbolize the forthcoming era.
(circa 1920)
In those days, automobiles driven in Japan were predominantly made by overseas manufacturers, and Japanese-made cars were still in their infancy. In addition to being unable to secure adequate part accuracy and performance, Japanese cars were much higher priced than those produced in foreign countries, where mass-production systems were already established. Jujiro thought deeply, “If I were to manufacture a car, I would do it differently… I would….”
In 1923, The Great Kanto Earthquake severely damaged railways and tram networks, turning the spotlight onto automobiles as an exclusive means of transportation for both people and goods. The growing public attention led to a sharp increase in demand for automobiles, creating an opportunity overseas car manufactures could not miss. Ford established a new assembly plant in Yokohama, and GM set up a plant in Osaka, both introducing models one after another into the Japanese market. On the other hand, Japanese carmakers were no match for their foreign counterparts, since there were still large disparities between them in terms of both manufacturing technologies and systems.
In 1927, Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd. was renamed Toyo Kogyo Co., Ltd. by President Jujiro Matsuda. What motivated him was his own passion for “all things that move” which had remained unchanged since his childhood.
“People want automobiles, now might be the time…” thought Jujiro.
He wanted to make the engine as well as each and every part that composes it with his own two hands. He hoped to put these parts together to assemble a vehicle that he could release to the whole world.
And thus, in 1929, Jujiro finally resolved to venture into a new realm-the automobile industry-marking a significant historic milestone for the company.
(circa 1931)
(circa 1921)