Company
Japan-France Exchange
Inabata's connection with France goes back to the latter half of the nineteenth century when Katsutaro Inabata was sent there from Kyoto to study dyeing and staining. When he came back to Japan he set up Inabata's dyestuffs business, importing dyestuffs and dyeing machinery from France. This was the origin of today's Inabata & Co., Ltd.
The aim of our founder was not just to expand business through trade; he wanted the company to contribute to the introduction of the latest technology from Europe into Japanese society on a wide scale. He imported the Cinematograph cinema projector, invented by the Lumière Brothers, from France, and in 1897 it was Katsutaro Inabata who gave the first public showing of a movie in Japan.
In 1926, the French Ambassador to Japan, Paul Claudel and Katsutaro Inabata set up a foundation for Franco-Japanese cultural exchange in Kyoto in order to promote French language education and cultural exchange between the two countries. Katsutaro Inabata, as the Chairman of the Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, encouraged local businesses to donate money. The following year in 1927, the Kansai Franco-Japanese Institute (Institut Franco-Japonais du Kansai) was inaugurated in the Kujoyama district of Kyoto, with the aim of providing French language education.
Ever since, the director of the Institute has always been the French Ambassador but the assistant director has always been the chairman or the president of Inabata. Currently the organization includes not only the Institut Franco-Japonais du Kansai which has moved to new premises in front of Kyoto University, but also the "Société de Rapprochement Intellectuel Franco-Japonais" established in Kujoyama in 1992, which incorporates the "Academie de Musique Francaise de Kyoto".
The construction of a new building for the Institut Franco-Japonais du Kansai, was requested by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This project was incorporated into Inabata's 100 year anniversary celebrations. A project team was set up in the company, money was raised from various organizations, and a great collective effort was made by our employees.
