The nature-rich scenery healed us all・・

What a wonderful world! Having this phrase in mind, we all got relaxed on the train. Today we, all the staff at CUSE BERRY, were visiting Baby Leg Warmer Factory in nature-rich Nara Prefecture, 90 minutes away from Osaka Japan.

Clickety-clack, clickety-clack―as the sound of our train became completely comfortable to us, our train was coming closer to our destination, Socks-Village (Kutsushita-mura) where the factory is located. Listening to the train, we enjoyed ‘a train window theater’ to our hearts’ content, through which we were really amazed at the natural scenery of local great mountains and a large expanse of greenery rice fields.

In the flow of the scenes through the window theater, we sometimes found single houses located sparsely in the great nature. The regulated frequency, with which the single houses came to our sight, made a unique rhythm and this rhythm got us glued to the theater. Feeling this rhythm, we all came to be quiet and silent, otherwise we would have enjoyed chatting too loudly with each other in the train. We found ourselves keeping silent and mentally relaxed.

After the 90 minutes’ ride, we got off at the station where we were welcomed by the fresh flagrance from beautiful flowers and birds’ song there. It was our first visit to this town in Nara Pref. This town seemed to be very calm and welcoming to us. This town also seemed to have something that softened our mind.

Socks-Factory in Socks-Village

Socks-Factory (Baby Legwarmer Factory) in Socks-Village, Nara Pref.proud of 200 socks factories.

Executive Director at Socks-Factory kindly picked us up at the station by car. When we were heading for the factory, one of our staff members who were looking at the outside through the car window found something unusual. “Oh! All the signboards of the shops I see here say ‘Socks’, ‘Socks’, ‘Socks’! I can’t find any other types of signboards here,” said the staff member. Hearing this remark, the executive director driving us to the factory said, “Exactly! All the shops here are socks workshops.” “In our communities here, we don’t sell or buy socks. We have a traditional custom that we give socks to each other.” “What? Is that so? It’s new to us!!” we got surprised at such a custom.

The Socks-Factory we were heading for is located in Socks-Village, Nara Prefecture. Currently this village has about 200 working socks factories, but when the socks industry was most prosperous before, this village had as many as 1,300 socks factories.

What’s the secret of the factory which makes as many as 800,000 pairs of socks every month?

As soon as we arrived at the factory, the vice president welcomed us, saying loudly, “Welcome to our factory!! Nice to meet you all!” We had heard that this factory makes as many as 800,000 pairs of socks every month? This is a very surprising figure. Then, we had an interview with the vice president.

Fashionable Socks Designed and Made Very Carefully and Elaborately

Vice President（VP）：　Our factory will be 60 years old soon this year!
CUSE BERRY（CB） You will be marking a good history! Congratulations!
VP： And this reminds me of another anniversary we will have soon!　 Some years ago, we had an accident and then our factory was burned up!!

CB：　Really? Was it burned up?
VP：　Yes. That fire was broadcasted in the Morning News Show on NHK.It took as long as five days to put down the fire!
CB：　Five days!!
VP：　But it was a good and rare lesson for us to have gone through such an unlucky bad experience in our history.

They said that the extinguishing work had been really just like an end-less game. Once the fire was put out at one place, another fire broke out in another place, because the factory had been full of various kinds of clothes at different sections.

Suffering from such a big fire, they never gave up and have continued to make socks till now. The vice president talked to us about the fire case cheerfully, strongly showing us the professionalism as a reliable socks-maker.

Checking one by one herself

Curiosity and Vigor Come Fist! Over 60-Years’ Long Career as Socks-Maker

When we were talking to the vice president, the president of this factory showed up. He said to us, “Hi, Friends! Thanks for your coming today!” His voice was very loud, welcoming and cheerful.

It was back in 1948 when the president came to know about the socks-making business through his friend. At that time, the president was around 21 years old, just returned from China after the World WarⅡ. He studied the business for about 20 months and started to do his business as a socks-maker at the age of 22. Since then, he has been deeply and proudly involved in the business for over 60 years as a great expert.

President（P）：　 Your staff members are very cheerful and good, aren’t they?
CUSE BERRY（CB）： 　Thanks and you are much more cheerful than us! We have heard that you never fail to check all the e-mails everyday for business. More than that, you vigorously go climbing mountains more than 100 times
every year!
P：How come do you know that? (laughing)
CB：　 How old are you, if we may ask?
P：　Too shy to tell you how old I am! (laughing)
CB：　55 or so?
P：　Well, around that・・・ (laughing)

Fashionable Socks Designed and Made Very Carefully and Elaborately

From the beginning, we had a very smooth rapport talk with the president, exchanging humors, about socks, the factory and the production, and so on. We had a detailed interview with him. Unfortunately, we failed to ask him exactly how old he was, but we got informed that he was around 83 years old.

In spite of his actual age, he is very much energetic, active, and vigorous in operating a computer skillfully on business and climbing mountains for leisure. The president showed us his own presence as a professional socks-maker through the interview with us.

Superb Tools for Professionalism

Socks are Part of his Life! The Dream as a Professional

CB： You love socks, do you?
P：　 Yes, I do. I’ve been destined to make good socks and offer them to our customers for their joy. Socks are really part of my life!

The president purely loves socks and socks-making. His pure passion for socks-making has been a driving power of this factory to produce a lot of wonderful socks. We found out this fact through the talk with him.

His passion expressed through his words as a socks maker fully got across to all the staff members at CUSE BERRY who are also a professional maker.

We were all very pleased to come to know their professionalism in making socks.

They are very vigorous and cheerful, and so never make us feel their hardships in making their products, even if they may be faced with any of them. They showed us, through our interview that they really love and diligently work on making good socks for their customers forever.

Now, we proudly would like to offer Leg Warmers made at this factory to our customers all.

Leg Warmers are heartfelt items for you!