There are regional variations; one or two people wearing the lion costume, and one or two lions dancing. At the end of the dance, the lion “bites” the heads of some watchers, to bring luck.

For 35 years, Edwin Japan have worked on improving efficiency, quality, construction and washing methods by studying and engineering machinery used in the denim manufacturing process.

It is impossible to improve what one makes without spending the time everyday to master what one does, turning ones profession into a craft. The denim technicians at Edwin are true craftsmen, as their commitment and attention to the product is unquestionably what makes the Edwin product stand out from the mass of denim available within the market today. Whilst this remains ‘production’, the working philosophy remains closer to a greatly more efficient and productive Artisanal method.

They are ‘engineers’. Each person, over the course of a long period is encouraged to be responsible for maintaining and improving their machines. This means that each machine is self-customised beyond standard industrial purposes, to create unique and specialised ways of making denim. Even within the well-known denim brands factories around the world, you will not see the level of customised machinery and attention to product that one can see at the Edwin factories in Japan. It is for this reason, many ‘core heritage’ Japanese denim brands wish to have their products made within the Edwin Japan factories. This is the unique strength of the Edwin Jeans brand, the product itself.

The majority of the technicians at the Edwin factories and laundry’s have worked within the company since the beginning. This means they have an acute understanding for their machine. Each technician is responsible for three machines on average, all performing different elements of the production process. They remain on these machines for the duration of the careers. There is almost now rotation of staff, offering complete consistency in the making.

The machines are completely unique and totally custom made, exclusively to EDWIN JAPAN, which sets EDWIN out as a denim manufacturer worldwide. There is not a single machine, which has not been customised by the technicians over the time they work on them.

The technicians themselves are trained for two years with a veteran of their particular machines, prior to them leaving for retirement. This ensures absolute consistency and understanding for high quality workmanship. As the factories have been operating 35 years, there is now a seeding of new, younger apprentices learning the ropes, thus setting of the career cycle.

There are many elements unique to EDWIN Japan manufacturing, for which unfortunately we are not able to show images. This is due to the secretive nature of the processes, elements having been invented by EDWIN, and must be respected and protected. There are a wide variety of processes invented by the denim engineers and designers themselves, which set new standards within the industry offering evolution and ingenuity.

The laundries are incredible, with bespoke and exclusively made machines. Unique ways of washing, dying, drying and above all water purification and recycling. The water is purified to the point whereby once all the indigo and other impurities have been extracted, fish are able to swim in tank of the purified water.

These elements have been in place for many years, and yet never spoken about or promoted as a marketing tool. This is because Edwin esteems this to be a ‘standard’ process. It is simply the way of EDWIN manufacture and not a simple ‘marketing’ idea.

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CREDITS:
Director / Cinematographer / Editor: Yutaka Obara(DRAWING AND MANUAL)
Cinematographer: Kazuhiro Morisaki (CENDO Inc.)
Sound Director: Shinya Kiyokawa(Invisible Designs Lab)
Jazz Improvisation Artist: Miki Tsukamoto(Pf), Kiyoshi Mamura(Ba), Keiichiro Uemura(Dr)
Jazz Arrangement Adviser: Yoko Komori
Recording Engineer: Mikihiko Ishibashi(HEACON STUDIO)
Mixing Engineer: Jun Nishikawa(STS STUDIO)
Producer: Takashi Ueno(DRAWING AND MANUAL)
Production: DRAWING AND MANUAL
Agency: ADMAC
Special thanks to Ishikawa prefecture

Ishikawa Travel Guide: hot-ishikawa.jp/english/index.html