“Creating an independent, circulative and sustainable society with a 1000 year vision through Cultural Business”

Interview with Isao Kitabayashi

Isao Kitabayashi, the CEO of COS KYOTO, is one of those people who is fascinated with the world of local industry and its business potential. “Cultural Business Coordinator.” This is his title. In fact, Isao is involved in a number of different projects and businesses in Kyoto, but what actually does a “Cultural Business Coordinator” do? 

“People involved in manufacturing have extraordinary skills and experiences that they can be proud of, even internationally. However, sadly, we are living in the world of mass-produced and cheap products. As we are so used to obtaining many things cheaply, we feel disinclined to spend extra money on quality products even if we understand the price is an indicator of their quality and the highly skilled people who produced them. As a result, it has become very difficult for conventional Shokunin (craftspeople or manufacturers) to survive,” Isao says. 

This is when a “Cultural Business Coordinator” is needed, Isao believes. COS KYOTO provides a holistic service to manufacturers and craftspeople which includes offering management plans, branding, product development, domestic and international market research and development, and more. In this way, COS KYOTO is trying to provide a service which can update local industries in a way that is befitting for modern society.

“Both the starting point and ultimate goal of my business lies in the same personal wish: to help improve the present state of the earth’s environment.” Isao states. “Within the earth’s 4.6 billion years of life we human beings started our history only a few million years ago, and that marked the beginning of environmental destruction.

Particularly, what we have done in the last few hundred years, since industrialization started, is unbelievable. We have almost used up all the natural resources on the planet! Even though I didn’t understand it scientifically, I was very scared for the future when I was a kid and naturally became interested in environmental issues.”

After graduating from university, Isao worked for some large companies in Kyoto and Tokyo. This experience gave him a chance to look at Kyoto and his hometown, Nara, from a different angle. He discovered a local business in Nara which has existed for over 1000 years. “Continuing a business over a few hundreds of years really shows that the business is sustainable. I felt as if I was enlightened!” Isao recalls. 

Few cities in the world can compete with Kyoto’s long history and its diversity of unique local industries. However, it is a fact that the number of Shokunin is decreasing as is the number of those from the younger generation who wish to work as Shokunin. Many factories and studios often have no choice but to close their long-abiding businesses. “Kyoto is such a versatile city filled with creative and skillful people, but sadly, those people don’t interact across the borders of their business field.”

Realizing this, Isao considered how he could bring about change. “Empowering the creativity of Kyoto through diverse interaction beyond borders.” This is the philosophy of DESIGN WEEK KYOTO (DWK), the project Isao founded in 2016. DWK is an invaluable opportunity for those interested in craftsmanship and manufacturing industries and also for the craftspeople themselves. “Open Factory” is the main highlight during the event-filled week when factories and studios throughout Kyoto are opened to the public and anyone who is interested can visit and talk with the Shokunin and directly learn about and watch them work (DWK is held in the late February every year).

 “I can say that DWK is like seamlessly cultivating the soil of a field. It’s quite a tough job to manage but every year I look forward to seeing what kind of flowers or vegetables grow from the soil we nurtured together. My hope is to make the field broader and richer.”

 Isao’s job is challenging because what he is trying is not simply to preserve traditional industries but also to update them so they can survive far into the future. He must have an eye that can tell what should remain as it is and what must be changed, otherwise, he believes, a new value will not come to life.

 A “Cultural Business Coordinator” is a key person who supports local industry today and for the near future, 10 or 20 years hence, but also always considers how this company or product can be sustainable and continually creative in order to still be alive 1000 years from now.

Isao Kitabayashi

CEO of COS KYOTO Co., Ltd., Founder of DESIGN WEEK KYOTO

Working as a “Cultural Business Coordinator” who aims to establish a circulative and sustainable society. Founded DESIGN WEEK KYOTO in 2016. Isao has been involved in a variety of projects and events all of which attempt to form a “community” where people with common goals contribute to the society through encouraging and promoting local industry.