Yoshida File Factory

Many of the nail files that can be mass-produced are simple in design. However, if they continued to make only those, the technology would not develop any further, which is why they have never given up on the challenge of creating new things. Taking on new challenges is a continuous process of trial and error.

Around this time, a technique called etching, which involves dissolving the surface of stainless steel to create a finish, began to appear, making it possible to create finer file marks than would be possible with regular file sharpening. Manufacturing nail files, which require traditional file sharpening on the front and etching on the back, was extremely difficult. Senshichi Yoshida, the sixth generation owner, saw the company's efforts and sometimes criticized them, saying, "There are too many 'suko' (a Swallow dialect word meaning defective products) that Mi makes." But even so, they did not give up on the challenge.

After repeated trial and error with the type of stainless steel and the balance of sharpening, the nail file with file sharpening and etching was finally produced in a stable manner. Yoshida File Manufacturing still produces nearly 80,000 of these nail files annually, making them a product that cannot be imitated anywhere in the country.