The home of imabari towels
Imabari is located in Ehime Prefecture on Shikoku, the smallest of Japan’s main islands.
Nestled between the Shikoku Mountains and the Seto Inland Sea, the region is blessed with a temperate climate.
Shikoku is gaining popularity as a tourist destination for its 88 Temple Pilgrimage and the locals follow a long tradition of hospitality to pilgrims. Imabari is known for its hospitality and generosity – citizens continue to donate food, money and other necessities. Imabari is also the birthplace of Imabari towels, which are a household name in Japan.
About us
About Murakami Pile
Murakami Pile Co., Ltd. was founded 53 years ago. We handle everything from towel production to sales. In addition to OEM projects, we have developed our own brand, MiRT. We are actively expanding our business within Japan and overseas to make the benefits of Imabari Towels even more widely known.
Bland concept
Lift your spirits, brighten your home
Our daily lives are full of routine, yet it is only natural that our moods change like the weather – from bright as a sunny sky to dark and gloomy as a rainy day. When you feel tired or downcast, everyday pleasures can revive your mood: indulging in a sweet treat or relaxing in a hot bath at the end of a long day.
Take the comfortable feeling of getting into a freshly made bed – there a soothing quality about it beyond simple warmth that calms you and restores your spirits.
Murakami Pile stands for this quality – there is something about our towels that makes you feel like humming a tune just having them in your home. Our towels will refresh you every day and brighten up your life – this is the feeling we hope to share in our brand concept.
Logo mark
Excellent Water Absorbency and Safety are the Marks of an Imabari Towel.
The imabari towel brand mark and logo are only included on products that meet the independently developed quality standards of Imabari, Japan’s largest center of towel production.
PRODUCT
Imabari area towel producers make use of underground water from the Soja River, which has its source on Mount Takanawa,
and other high-quality water sources in order to achieve soft fiber textures and vivid color expression. They have utilized these advantages and further refined their dyeing techniques to transform Imabari into the largest towel production region in all of Japan.
One of the independent quality standards established by the Shikoku Towel Industrial Association states
that “a section of the towel must start sinking within five seconds of being placed in water” (sink test), which demonstrates that
the towel can absorb water from initial usage without being washed first.
Imabari towels quickly absorb sweat, water and other liquids, won’t become clingy when used for wiping down one’s body after getting out
of the bath or wiping off sweat, and are gentle on the skin.
COMPANY PROFILE
- Trade name
- MURAKAMI PILE CO.,LTD
- Representative
Director - Masayoshi Murakami
- Founding
- April 1967
- Establishment
- October 1960
- Capital
- \10 million
- Business
Activities - Towel manufacturing
- Products
- Various types of original towels
Customer-order name-inscribed towels
Sales promotion towels
Business-use towels
Gift products - Imabari
Sales Division - 1881 Ko, Kuo, Onishi-cho, Imabari, Ehime
799-2201
TEL: +81-898-53-3322 / FAX: +81-898-53-4618 - Osaka Sales
Office - Maruzen Bldg. #405 2-4-3 Minamihonmachi,
Chuo-ku, Osaka
541-0054
TEL: +81-6-6262-4455 / FAX: +81-6-6210-4477 - Factory
- 180-2 Ko, Oka, Namikata-cho, Imabari, Ehime
799-2108
TEL: +81-898-52-2211 / FAX: +81-898-52-2271
CORPORATE HISTORY
- Apr. 1960
- Founded in Imabari as Murakami Shokufu Kojo with 10 looms
- Jun. 1963
- Ten additional Toyota looms introduced
- Oct. 1966
- Six Toyota automated “Super Loader” (dobby) looms introduced
- Oct. 1967
- Incorporated as Murakami Pile Co., Ltd.
- Oct. 1968
- Delivery center built in Onishicho-kuo, Imabari City
- Oct. 1983
- Six high-speed Rapier looms introduced at the Head Office Factory
- Aug. 1987
- New sales office built at the Onishicho-kuo Delivery Center, relocated, and operations expanded
- Oct. 1988
- Two Toyota Sulzer looms introduced
- Aug. 1989
- Imports from China begun
- May. 1990
- Textile information processing equipment and fabric design system introduced
- Aug. 1990
- KYB-type direct Jacquard weaving equipment introduced
- Sep. 1992
- Towel Printing Plant 工場法恩綿製品有限公司 established through a joint investment with 中国青島美好巾被服ｲ分有限公司
- Oct. 1998
- Six Rapier looms introduced at the Head Office Factory
- Feb. 1999
- “Eco-Towel” becomes a registered trademark
- Jul. 2002
- Onishicho-kuo Delivery Center renovated and expanded
- Jan. 2006
- One Konica Minolta inkjet printer introduced
- Aug. 2006
- Osaka Sales Office opened
- Jun. 2011
- Towel composition design simulation system introduced
- Feb. 2012
- New-model warping machine introduced
- Sep. 2012
- Two Toyota JAT 710 Air Jet looms introduced
- Apr. 2014
- Two Toyota JAT 710 Air Jet looms added
- Jun. 2015
- Two Toyota JAT 710 Air Jet looms added
- Aug. 2017
- Three Toyota JAT 810 Air Jet looms added
- Nov. 2019
- EAT textile design software introduced
- Mar. 2020
- Konica Minolta NassengerPRO120 inkjet printer added
- Jun. 2020
- Toyota JAT 810 Air Jet loom added
