ICHITOI and Japanese Kitchen Knife Culture

Deliverers refers to not just the shipping and delivery sector, but industries like retail and wholesaling. It's their job to listen to people's needs, procure the product required, and get it to where it needs to go. This can also refer to specific companies that create products through a series of smaller products, parts or goods. This could be to sell onto a retailer, or support artisans by selling their works so that the artisans can focus on production.

Deliverers want to deliver good products with stable quality and quantity, or fulfill orders with such products.

Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide listens to its chefs and users, organising knives to be made to fit their needs and delivers them not only to customers in-store, but through Japan and around the world. Sometimes, this is in larger amounts for corporate needs.

Local shopping areas are as they sound, local shopping streets or department stores working together to support all the stores inside them and increase their value to a local and now internationally emerging area. Examples would be shopping streets like Tenjinbashi and Ebisubashi in Osaka, as well as many other shopping streets all over Japan. Sometimes these are long, but often they only have a few stores in them. Nevertheless, they may be hotspots, and some streets will also fit a theme to try and get people to visit. An example of this would be Sennichimae Doguyasuji Kitchenware Shopping Street, supported by the Doguyasuji Shopping Street Association.

Local shopping areas want to revitalize and promote or enhance their areas.

Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide is part of Doguyasuji Shopping Street—one of the world's most famous professional kitchenware streets, and ICHITOI exists to not only promote knifemaking, but to encourage people to visit Doguyasuji and promote its status as a hotspot for professional chefs and knife and tool enthusiasts.

Specialised regions refers to areas where people group and bind together to make products or culture. In our context, this could also be referred to as tool and utensil making districts. In fact, we originally called it that and still do in some places, but want to be more global in our thoughts now. Examples in the world of knifemaking might be Takefu Knife Village or the region of Sakai itself, which houses many of the world's most famous craftspeople in a single area.

Specialised regions want to improve tool production in their area, and showcase what they make.

Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide, while not being headquartered in Sakai, is part of and a key supporter of Sakai as a knifemaking region, as well as other knifemaking regions around Japan such as Tsubame and Sanjo in Niigata, Seki in Gifu, Tosa in Kochi, and more.

Food producers refers to more than just farmers, but also fisherman, butchers, processing companies and more. It is a crucial sector, that is often underrated despite how necessary it is for our daily lives, and the world's food culture.

Food producers want to make really delicious food for people.

While Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide does not make or process food, we make knives that are used in such industries, and support many companies in food production by hosting demonstrations using or introducing their products at ICHITOI.

Educators refer to the learning sector. This can mean schools, universities, and other educational institutions, but can also refer to knifemaking and sharpening educational YouTubers, speakers, and lecturers. With learning becoming more digital and global, it is important to make sure no section of education is missed when we refer to educators, so the term is more broad than our other areas.

Educators want to nurture and develop people.

Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide's mission as an educator is to develop the future of knifemaking, and promote this traditional craft to those of all ages and walks of life. If we do not educate on this tool culture, the risk of it vanishing becomes significantly greater. If anything, this is the area that ICHITOI relates to the most.

Administrators refers to local government sectors and administrative agencies. For example, federal, prefectural and municipal governments, the trade branches that support them, and so on. These agencies are important, as connecting them to the other ten key areas helps enrich those sectors.

Adminstrators want to provide and support good services to better support and enrich people's lives.

While Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide is not an administrator, ICHITOI was built thanks to business restructuring subsidies that only local governments can provide, so they are intrisically linked to ICHITOI's mission—promoting Osaka's tool and food culture to Japan and the world.

Messengers refers to the creative branding, marketing, and media sectors. This can be outlets like newspapers, television, and magazines, but also refers to branding and marketing companies. Influencers and celebrities can also fall under this category.

Messengers want to identify with and relate to people.

Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide has the mission of communicating Sakai knifemaking to the world through collaborative programs with media and influencer outlets like social media. This article itself would fall under the messenger category, as well as places like our YouTube channel!

Cultural ambassadors refers to people of and supporting cultures around the world. This is not just limited to Japanese cultural ambassadors spreading their culture around the world, but also cultures from outside Japan coming into Japan as well as the rest of the globe.

Cultural ambassadors want to discover other cultures and people and connect to them.

Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide employs people from various countries, such as Australia, Thailand, Taiwan, and America. These people bring their cultural and international knowhow to enrich what we do, and present those perspectives to not only a Japanese audience, but a global one.

Traditional craftspeople sounds simple, but it means more than people who engage in traditional crafts. We also use it to refer to those who continue to question what and how things should be preserved, using creation as a medium.

Traditional craftspeople want to preserve tradition

Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide works deeply in Sakai Uchihamono, the art of traditional Japanese kitchen knifemaking, with ICHITOI aiming to preserve this important art for the next 100 years. However, we preserve this art by creating more of it, and making it accessible to people worldwide.

Users are just that, people who use kitchen tools! Chefs, home cooks, and even families. Likely you as well! Users are incredibly important, as it is the users of a culture that have the most power to spread a culture they use and like into their local surroundings through word of mouth, online reviews, and simply being happy with what they are using.

Users want to make people smile with their cooking.

While we are knifemakers, Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide makes knives for users—many of us are ex-chefs and cook ourselves. We have to respect our users and listen to them seriously, so we can make tools that they want to use and thus impact their local cultures and surroundings—even if that is as simple as the food they are putting on the table at dinnertime. We are also users, though! We wouldn't make or sell a knife that we feel we couldn't use.