by Jacqui Miyabayashi of Mee A Bee
About five years ago I moved from downtown Osaka to a much smaller city about an hour south. With a population of just 150,000 I often wondered why there were so many towel shops everywhere. This curiosity led me to do a bit a research and I found out that this area is a well-known towel manufacturing district, collectively known as the Senshu Towel District.
This tiny city produces almost half of the towels made in Japan. What’s really interesting is that production is undertaken by over a hundred small businesses locally. Most have only a few employees and their ‘factories’ are barely more than small workshops housed in old buildings and garages. It’s kind of funny to see them in amongst houses in quiet residential areas.
In the late 1800s a local man began experimenting with towel making. It took him about two years to perfect the weaving of long strands of cotton into toweling pile. He then pioneered a method of bleaching the towels that is still considered unique to this area. The resulting product was very soft, extremely absorbent and long-lasting. Atozarashi (bleached after weaving) towels are beautiful and so luxurious.
It’s very difficult to compete with mass-produced, cheap imports so the industry differentiates itself by consistently making a high quality towel. Most senshu towels are still made according to the traditional technique. The cotton is imported, mainly from the USA, but all of the weaving and sewing is done right here in my city. Great strides have been made with environmentally-friendly techniques. Low-impact chemicals, low noise-emitting machinery, hand-finishing. Organic cotton has been incorporated into some lines, others are not bleached and some are colored with plant dyes. Senshu towels are great for people with sensitive skin and are lovely for babies.
While not exactly handmade, the senshu towel is a great example of a traditional industry that has evolved to survive in the modern world. By remaining committed to their core-product, keeping up with consumer trends, incorporating new technology and being dedicated to quality, the group ensures they will continue to be a strong local employer for hopefully another one hundred or so years!
If you’re interested in buying senshu towels you could try Rakuten, Japan’s biggest online shopping site. Want to have a little bit of Japan for your very own? I will be giving away the two lovely towels pictured on the right to a randomly selected commenter. Open internationally, just leave a comment! Also be sure to visit my blog http://www.bloomingnihon.blogspot.com for snippets of my life in Japan and my Mee A Bee work.
This giveaway is now closed! The winner is comment #18 from Allison-hope you love your towels!
What a cool industry. I think one of those towels will be a part of my boyfriend’s birthday present – he loves Japan, and this would be a nice non-traditional, unexpected present! 🙂
They look so wonderfully soft and delicate! If I won these they’d be strictly for my use only…No kids with their sticky little fingers, or husbands with their stinky hockey hands!
I love that something so special and unique is still being done, bettered and passed on.. how cool is it that a century old tradition can now be shared in a global market too?
I would love to get them! They are very beautiful 🙂
Those are beautiful. Also, I love a good provenance story. It makes me appreciate the thought and history behind something.
So neat! The towels look lovely and it is so nice to hear how an object came to be.
How nice to see a beautiful tradition continue to thrive, given the prevalence of mass production. I definitely appreciate the care and eco-consciousness involved here. 🙂 The towels are lovely!
Very interesting! I love Japanese towels! Miki
I’m so glad to hear that small businesses still reign in some industries, in some places. It makes me feel better about the world!
The Japanese culture has some very beautiful parts to it. Thanks for sharing!
I love these towels so much! I have a few that I’d brought back form a previous trip and never knew the story behind them. Now I love them even more and would love to win some new ones to replace the threadbare ones I have now. A beautiful post!
Oh, how sweet! My little girl would love these 🙂
These are so pretty! It is so wonderful to hear about companies who put so much love and care into their products and who keep the tradition alive!
What a great story to start my morning with. So wonderful to hear about an industry that is staying focused on local and quality. And a soft, absorbent towel, what could be better?
What a cool history. These are so cute and I’d love to see one in real life. Thanks for sharing!
I love how traditional techniques are still being kept alive. High quality is worth the price.
these towels are so beautiful! love them!
LOVE your blog. As someone who dreams of running a successful business one day, I check have it at the top of my Google Reader! Thank you for the great tips, tricks, and ideas! Keep them coming!
very interesting post… thanks for a peek into a different world around the globe!
It’s very interesting to know the story behind a product like this. I’d love to try one of these towels, my little son would love it, and I have never seen them here. Best regards from Barcelona,
Marta
Thanks for the story Jacqui. That was really fascinating. I can really imagine that cluster of small business around your neighborhood.
oh wow – soooo nice.
Having spent nearly 3 weeks in Japan as part of an International Guide visitn in my teens, I love reading about Japan. I wish I could revisit now 16 years on, as my older self would appreciate so much more the culture.
Thank you for sharing a bit of Japan for us all to enjoy,
Viv 🙂
Thanks for sharing the history of your town. As a designer and sewer I love learning about these types of things!
I really enjoyed to get to know a little bit about your city! The towels are beautiful and look as soft as baby bum 😉
Beautiful! And a very interesting story. thank you for personalizing your city and the local industry. I hope to win one and will buy some too. thanks for the website!
beautiful. I love the way Japanese culture still continues to practice the old ways.
Thanks for sharing the interesting story about the towels. They look lovely!
Thank you for sharing such an intriguing story!
Thanks so much for sharing, Jacqui! I love learning about other cultures!
We’ll be visiting family in Kyoto soon and this reminds me of the beauty of Japan’s streets…thanks for sharing this tradition, beautiful panda towel:)
I love the towels and I read your blog every day…..what an inspiration!
What a wonderful story . I adore these towels and would love to import them into New Zealand. By any chance would you have a contact for one of the families that make the towels. Thank you so much
Charlotte