Shinohara Shiko: Making Things Unbound by Convention

In the eastern Tokyo ward of Kōtō, family-run bookbindery Shinohara Shiko has been cutting, folding, and binding paper to make books and magazines for almost fifty years. Now, as globalization challenges traditional industries and puts pressure on small-scale manufacturers, they are adapting their business to try to carve out a niche — by partnering with parallel companies in the industry and focusing on close collaboration with designers, even developing their own products. It's an unusually proactive approach for an industry that typically operates behind the scenes with quiet expertise and efficiency to deliver the finished product. We sat down with CEO Keisuke Shinohara to talk about his role in the family business and what motivates him in his work.

April 17, 2022