Brand record
Kawai
Kawai Shokai (河合商会) was a Japanese toy and hobby company whose range included plastic model kits, N-gauge railway models, diorama parts and miniature cars. It began in 1971 by making and selling components for railway-model layouts. Its railway range later included freight cars, while its other products included the Fūbutsushi and Hakoniwa miniature scene series. The company also wholesaled and imported hobby goods, and its business expanded into exports and related toy sales.
- Founded
- 1950
- Countries
- Japan
- Locations
- Japan · 1950
The story of Kawai
Kawai Shokai began operations in July 1971 in Shimane-chō, Adachi, Tokyo, making and selling parts for railway-model dioramas. It changed its organization to a limited company in September 1973 and joined Japan’s plastic-model industry cooperative in 1976. In 1977, its Hakoniwa miniature-scene series, released under Green Hobby, received the Plastic Model Grand Prize’s Frontier Award. The company added railway freight cars in 1991 and began manufacturing its own plastic models at a factory in Guangdong, China, in 1995.
In January 1999, Kawai Shokai changed from a limited company to a joint-stock company. Its business extended beyond its own models: it established a die-cast car sales company in 1998, began selling New-Ray products as the brand’s general agent in 2004, and took on Japanese distribution for military models from JS INT in 2008. By 2012, the company’s range included plastic kits, N-gauge railway models, diorama products and miniature cars, with wholesale and import-export operations. A 2012 report said Kawai Shokai stopped business on October 15 and filed for bankruptcy after a prolonged decline in sales.
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