During the Meiji era, many coffee shops and restaurants roasted their own coffee beans in-house, a practice we now call "house roasting." This was because, compared to today, coffee drinking was not a common practice, coffee establishments were few, and there was little demand for coffee beans.
However, starting around 1911, the number of establishments serving coffee gradually increased, leading to a rise in demand for coffee bean roasting services.
Amid this, Bunji Shibata, who had previously worked at Cafe Paulista,
founded the coffee merchant "Kimura Shoten" in Fukutomi-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama, in 1920 (Taisho 9).
Initially, the business roasted and processed coffee beans from around the world and sold groceries. Later, processed products such as "coffee syrup" became a hit.
The store was destroyed in the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, but re-opened in Yoshida-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama, 10 days later, re-establishing business with a roasting machine.
In 1928, the company changed its name to "Kimura Coffee Shop," established a factory in Yokohama, and began producing and selling coffee.
At this time, the "Key" brand, featuring a key symbol, was adopted, embodying the idea that "coffee is the key to unlocking new Japanese eating habits and culture."
In 1929, the "Key Can," featuring all-English writing and a key symbol, was released, making it possible for people to enjoy authentic coffee at home.
In the early Showa period, the company opened branches in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Hakata, and other locations, and operated its own farms in Taiwan and Okinawa, advancing the development of a comprehensive coffee industry covering everything from raw material procurement to sales.
Another notable feature was its involvement in coffee cultivation at the Taitung Coffee Plantation and Chiayi Coffee Plantation in Taiwan, and the Kesashi Plantation in Okinawa.
However, World War II dealt a major blow, with branches and farms in overseas territories being requisitioned and the company's Yokohama flagship store being destroyed in an air raid.
After the war, the company restructured its business by moving its headquarters to Tokyo and establishing an affiliated company to import coffee beans.
From the 1950s onwards, the company was one of the first to import and sell African coffee varieties such as "Kilimanjaro" and "Blue Mountain," ushering in a boom in luxury beans in the Japanese coffee market.
Reviving a Lost Coffee: The company focused on high-quality coffee that was once produced in the Toraja region of Indonesia but had disappeared from the market due to the chaos of the war. In the 1970s, the company worked with the local government to develop infrastructure such as roads and bridges, and opened a directly managed farm. This resulted in the launch of "Toarco Toraja" in 1978. This business, which not only involved import and sales but also regional development, is known as a historic project worthy of note in the coffee industry.
The company expanded its product line for both home and commercial use, establishing an instant coffee company and launching vacuum-packed coffee.
As a company, Key Coffee Co., Ltd. is a comprehensive coffee manufacturer with a diversified business, including regular coffee for home use, beans for commercial use, and coffee for cafe chains.
To celebrate its 100th anniversary in August 2020, the company embarked on an initiative to look back on the history of how coffee has taken root in Japan under its motto of "delicious, easy, and accessible to everyone."
The "KEY" in KEY COFFEE comes from the concept that coffee is the "key" to opening up a new food culture, and has remained the same symbol since the company's founding.
The company is recognized for its historical role as a pioneer, having spread the culture of drinking coffee not only in coffee shops but also in the home through canned coffee, syrup, and home-use key cans since before the war.
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