Ibara City, Okayama Prefecture is known as the “Holy Land of Denim.”
Ibara, the town of denim.
Denim from Ibara is highly regarded not only in Japan but also overseas.
Located in Ibara, NIHONMENPU TEXTILE CO., LTD. (hereafter, NIHONMENPU) is a textile mill that has continued making cotton fabrics since the Taisho era.
A textile mill is a building or a person that weaves fabric.
Carrying on traditional techniques, each thread is dyed with care and woven meticulously. The denim’s texture and character are the result of painstaking attention to detail.
Even in an era of price competition across the apparel industry, the company has remained committed to small-scale production and high added value.
Bringing Ibara’s high-quality denim to Japan and the world.
Here, we introduce NIHONMENPU’s passion for denim and its ties to the local community.
The information presented was current when this article was published in September 2023. Please note that it may differ from current information.
Overview of NIHONMENPU TEXTILE CO., LTD.
Beside the Oda River, amid a peaceful rural landscape, stand NIHONMENPU’s office and factory, along with its factory shop.
The factory shop opened in September 2022.
The factory shop sells jeans, shirts, and accessories made with NIHONMENPU denim.
NIHONMENPU was founded in 1917 as a manufacturer of Bitchu Kokura-ori textiles.
It began producing women’s and children’s clothing through an integrated process, from dyeing to weaving.
In 1926, it had the honor of having a bolt of NIHONMENPU fabric used as a gift for the Crown Prince, later Emperor Showa.
Denim production began in 1985, and the company expanded overseas as well as throughout Japan.
In 2007, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry recognized the cotton textile factory, dyeing factory, office, and cafeteria as Modernization Industrial Heritage sites under the designation “Cotton Industry-Related Heritage of Ibara City”.
Modernization Industrial Heritage refers to buildings, machinery, documents, and the efforts of those who came before us—many of which have been passed down as evidence of Japan’s industrial modernization. The Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry recognizes them for their historical value and their potential to contribute to regional revitalization.
The Sanbi District, a thriving textile industry area
In the early Edo period, cotton production was still limited, and cotton was a precious commodity.
It was used for gifts among daimyo, including items such as obi sashes and hakama trousers.
Cotton fabric was warm and soft to the touch, and it gradually became popular for everyday clothing as well.
As cotton spread, cotton began to be grown in warm regions throughout Japan.
Ibara City was one such place.
Ibara City lies in southwestern Okayama Prefecture and was on the route taken by daimyo during their alternate attendance journeys in the Edo period.
It flourished as a post town on the Sanyo Road and as a production centre for Bitchu Kokura-ori.
From the Meiji era onward, cotton weaving also developed into factory-based production.
The area stretching from Okayama Prefecture to Hiroshima Prefecture, where the textile industry thrives, is called the “Sanbi District.”
- Bizen: southeastern Okayama Prefecture — Kojima
- Bitchu: western Okayama Prefecture — Ibara and Kurashiki
- Bingo: eastern Hiroshima Prefecture — Fuchu and Fukuyama
The area produced Bingo Kasuri, one of Japan’s three major kasuri textiles, alongside Kurume Kasuri and Iyo Kasuri.
Denim emerged from the traditional techniques used to make Bitchu Kokura-ori and Bingo Kasuri.
The indigo color in Bingo Kasuri patterns is the origin of denim.
From Ibara to the world
NIHONMENPU has many business partners overseas.
The names of famous brands known to everyone come up.
RALPH LAUREN and Chrome Hearts in Los Angeles, and LEVI’S in San Francisco, among others.
A pair of RALPH LAUREN jeans costs more than 100,000 yen.
The company also does business with LOUIS VUITTON and Hermes.
Ibara denim is sought after and used overseas.
NIHONMENPU denim is highly regarded overseas.
In Japan, the company also supplies high-quality, premium-priced denim to jeans manufacturers such as EDWIN.
What sets NIHONMENPU TEXTILE CO., LTD. apart
NIHONMENPU denim, highly regarded in Japan and overseas, is distinguished by a number of carefully considered details.
Shuttle looms and jacquard looms
A machine that weaves yarn into fabric is called a loom.
Some looms use a shuttle to carry the weft yarn across, while others do not.
NIHONMENPU uses shuttle looms and jacquard looms.
Known as an old-style loom, the shuttle loom weaves denim as a shuttle carrying the weft yarn repeatedly travels back and forth between the warp yarns.
The fabric is 80 cm wide.
It can weave about 50 meters a day.
Compared with other looms, it works more slowly and requires considerable skill and manual labor.
Because this weaving method puts less strain on the yarn, it produces durable denim with a soft, textured feel.
A jacquard loom uses data recorded by punching holes in cards, and computer-controls 5,000 yarns, moving each one differently as it weaves the fabric.
The fabric is 150 cm wide.
It produces denim with a three-dimensional look and substantial thickness.
Selvedge denim
Denim woven on a shuttle loom is called selvedge denim.
Selvedge is the finished edge of denim that prevents fraying when the fabric is woven.
A red line along the finished edge is commonly called a “redline” or “red ear,” and is popular among denim enthusiasts.
NIHONMENPU has focused on selvedge denim since it began production.
Selvedge denim originated in America in the 1870s and was used for work jeans, as manufacturers sought to improve the production efficiency of denim fabric without finished edges.
In Japan, too, “redline” selvedge jeans, including Levi’s 501s, became popular among young people.
The “redline” is the mark of vintage denim produced before 1970.
Selvedge comes in colors other than red, too.
Some people turn up their jeans slightly to show the selvedge, subtly signaling, “I’m wearing jeans with a lot of attention to detail.”
Importing carefully selected cotton from around the world
NIHONMENPU imports cotton from around the world.
- San Joaquin cotton from California
- Turpan cotton from China
- Zimbabwe cotton from Africa
- Organic cotton from Turkey
The carefully selected imported cotton is spun into yarn at spinning mills, then transported to NIHONMENPU in several large container trucks.
How Ibara denim is made
The steps involved in making Ibara denim are as follows:
- Winding yarn into skeins
- Scouring
- Indigo dyeing
- Rope dyeing
- Sizing
- Drawing-in
Let’s look at each step in turn.
Winding yarn into skeins
The yarn delivered from the spinning mill is loosened in preparation for dyeing.
Written with the characters for “thread” and “endure,” it is read “kase.”
Scouring
The yarn wound into “kase” skeins is placed in a vat and scoured.
Scouring is the process of removing dirt and impurities from yarn.
The unwound and scoured bundles of yarn become fluffy, allowing the dye to penetrate more easily.
Indigo Dyeing
Dyeing with indigo and plants.
Yarn dipped in an indigo vat and dyed by artisans takes on a vivid indigo blue.
Indigo from Tokushima Prefecture is used.
Rope Dyeing
The warp yarn is dyed using a separate machine.
In rope dyeing, only excess liquid is removed; the center is left undyed.
The “character” and worn-in look that develop from continued wear of jeans are created by rope dyeing.
Sizing
Yarn is coated with starch or synthetic sizing so it will not break from friction during weaving.
Drawing-in
The yarn is threaded through the heddles, which are wires with small holes.
If there are 3,000 warp yarns, each is threaded by hand through one of 3,000 heddles.
Even for a skilled artisan, this process takes a full day.
This is all the preparation before denim is woven.
From here, denim is woven on each loom.
We interviewed company president Kawai Shinji about the appeal of Ibara denim and its ties to the local community.
NIHONMENPU TEXTILE CO., LTD. Information
| Organization | NIHONMENPU TEXTILE CO., LTD. |
|---|---|
| Industry | Manufacture and sale of denim and yarn-dyed apparel fabrics |
| Representative | Kawai Shinji |
| Established | January 2, 1917 |
| Address | 1076 Higashiebara-cho, Ibara City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Contact | 0866-63-0111 |
| Website | NIHONMENPU TEXTILE CO., LTD. |
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