Kurashiki has been producing textile products since ancient times and has been recognized by the Agency for Cultural Affairs as part of the Japan Heritage story “A Kurashiki story beginning with a single cotton flower: A textile town woven from Japanese and Western influences.”
The diverse textile products are also constituent cultural properties of the Japan Heritage story and are indispensable when looking back on Kurashiki’s history.
The textile industry not only supports Kurashiki, but also continues to pass down traditional culture today.
Textile products have developed alongside the town of Kurashiki.
We spoke with a member of Kurashiki City’s Japan Heritage Promotion Office about why textile production flourished in Kurashiki. We also introduce companies involved in the textile industry.
The information presented was current when this article was published in October 2025. Please note that it may differ from current information.
Textile products that helped Kurashiki flourish
The main textile products made in Kurashiki since ancient times are as follows:
- narrow-width woven fabrics such as Sanada-himo cords and tatami edging
- tabi socks
- canvas
- school uniforms
- denim and jeans
From everyday items to popular souvenirs, the textile products made in Kurashiki are diverse.
Why textile products came to be made in Kurashiki
In the past, southern Kurashiki was not land but a shallow sea.
Many place names, such as “Tamashima” and “Mizushima,” include the word “shima” (island) because each was once an island.
Land reclamation began about 400 years ago, during the Edo period, and areas that had been sea were reclaimed to create land.
The newly created land had once been under the sea, so it contained a lot of salt. Even for farming, only salt-tolerant crops could be grown.
The crops chosen were cotton and igusa.
The start of vigorous cotton cultivation in Kojima and Tamashima was what led Kurashiki to begin producing textile products.
From cotton production to cotton yarn manufacturing, and then to value-added textile products
During the Meiji period, the government began promoting the spinning industry, and spinning mills were established in Kurashiki in the following order: Tamashima Spinning Mill, Shimomura Spinning Mill in Kojima, and Kurashiki Spinning Mill.
Among them, Kurashiki Spinning Mill, established by Ohara Magosaburo, boasted the highest sales in Kurashiki despite being the last spinning mill to open there. It is said that introducing the latest British-style looms and achieving high-quality, high-speed production led to the expansion of the business.
Furthermore, the substantial wealth generated by the spinning industry was properly reinvested in Kurashiki, enriching residents’ lives through the establishment of hospitals, childcare centers, and the Ohara Museum of Art.
Because Kojima had little arable land, it shifted away from producing cotton as a raw material and toward using cotton to manufacture fabrics with even greater added value.
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