110 Years of Business and the Wisdom of Kyoto's Division of Labor

Could you tell us about the history of Bamba Dyeing Factory from its founding to the present day?

We were founded in 1913, during the Taisho era. My great-grandfather, who came to Kyoto from a farming family in Shiga as an apprentice, started the business. At the time, Kyoto's industry was centered on kimono dyeing, and it was a city built on a division of labor. The people who made the fabric, carved the stencils, steamed the cloth, washed it, and finished it—they were all specialists in their own fields.

Within that system, our factory specialized in a field called 'kata-yuzen,' handling the dyeing of silk and crepe silk (chirimen).

We still operate under this division of labor system, where dyeing, steaming, washing, and finishing are done in separate factories. In today's era of small-lot, high-variety production, this system actually gives us the advantage of being more flexible.

Kyoto's division of labor might seem inefficient at first glance, but it clearly has strengths that have allowed it to endure for so long.

That's right. A large factory with an integrated production line can't operate without large-lot orders, but our system allows for greater agility. These days, jobs that require dyeing thousands of the same pattern have decreased, and the mainstream is now orders in the hundreds, like for department store or brand-exclusive items. I believe this network of craftsmen, connected by trust, is the very foundation of Kyoto's dyeing culture.