The Path & The Connection
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About the Author
I was born into a small family workshop in Kyoto, surrounded by the quiet presence of artisans— the scent of dyed threads, the weight of fabrics, the discipline of hands moving with purpose. After graduating from university, I joined a major Japanese department store and later moved to London and Paris, where I spent my thirties working in international retail and brand management. Those years abroad made me increasingly aware of an unanswered question: Why are Japan’s finest crafts so rarely recognized as “luxury” in the global sense? Upon returning to Japan, I spent the next 25 years in the luxury industry, where I came to understand how brands are shaped not only by quality but by narrative, ritual, and cultural frameworks. These experiences led me to explore how Japanese aesthetics place value not simply on what is made, but on how it is made, how it matures, and how it lives over time. This blog is not an academic study nor cultural advocacy. It is a personal reflection—an attempt to trace the subtle, often invisible currents that shape Japanese craft, behavior, and sensibility. I hope to share these quiet observations with readers who, like me, find depth in what is understated, unresolved, and refined by time.
A Quiet Statement
This blog was created as a companion to a cultural experience project I am preparing in Kyoto— a pre-launch initiative dedicated not to commercial gain, but to supporting the spirit of Japanese culture, its traditional craftsmanship, and the communities that sustain them. It is, in many ways, a lifelong commitment rather than a conventional business venture. The project introduced on the landing page is not yet in active operation; it is currently in its preparation phase. I maintain this blog to share the sensibilities, perspectives, and foundational intentions behind that work with full transparency. If you wish to share your thoughts, I warmly invite you to do so as a conversation— not as criticism or appraisal, but as a way to cultivate mutual understanding. For this purpose, you’ll find a “Get In Touch” tab on the right side of the page. And should you be interested in the project itself, you are welcome to visit the landing page via the link at the top right. I hope this space becomes a quiet threshold where values, reflections, and a sense of curiosity can meet with sincerity.