Kiyohara & Co., Ltd. and Shimada Shoji Co., Ltd. are participating in PV with products refined through proprietary materials developed by taking advantage of wholesale store networks.

Kiyohara has developed new cord stopper products. Instead of the conventional type with push and slide attachments, Kiyohara has developed two types of metal stoppers in a barrel design—one that moves with just a light push of the stopper itself, and one that moves with a light pull of the bottom part of the stopper.

Kiyohara’s cord stopper

It has developed two varieties for both the design and the stopper material—round and square designs, and metal and plastic materials. The round design is fitted with a part that serves the role of the stopper when the side part is moved lightly up and down. The square design has a soft look brought out by the gentle curves on the side, and is equipped with a length-adjustment function enabled through an element at the top that can be opened and closed lightly. The company will propose this product, combining excellent design and functionality, as a new product to apparel manufacturers in Western markets.

Shimada Shoji has developed highly fashionable materials, including a material with enhanced shape retention capability and cushioning, produced by crimping a squeezed and moulded tube of silicon onto the base material, and a bonding material with mesh material as the lining to bring out mesh patterns and a rugged look on the surface.

In the area of padding material, it has developed products using micro acrylic. This padding is light, warm, and soft, offering greater warming functionality than polyester padding. In addition to developing the “Aurora Sheet” that glows like a rainbow through the use of an aluminium sheet, which harnesses radiant heat to prevent body heat from escaping, it has also developed successive materials such as a low rebounding material made with fibres that suppress vibration (vibration damping fibre). These efforts mark the company’s full-scale foray into business partnerships with the sports, casual wear, and uniform markets, to name just a few.

Each company is expanding development of products equipped with functionality as well as creativity through the liberal use of Japanese technology, and drawing attention to the appeal of superior Japanese quality that underpins safety, security, ease of use, and fashion sensibility.