Our Story

It started with a putter.

In 2018, we invested 40 million yen in a new 5-axis machining center. For a 12-person factory in Kasugai City, it was an enormous bet.

To show the world what this machine could do, we made a golf putter. Solid brass. Precision-cut. Beautiful. A professional golfer looked at it and said: “You can’t use this in a tournament.”

So we made it better. We spent another 10 million yen and two years perfecting it.

Then we sold two putters – for 800,000 yen each – to a golf course owner in Russia. He told us: “Putin is coming next year. I’ll introduce you.”

The following year, the invasion began. Everything was frozen overnight.

We tried again.

We turned to China. Filed patents. Prepared for export.

The shipment arrived. The client said: “We cannot accept this.”

Two attempts. Two failures.

Then something shifted.

We asked ourselves a simple question: why are we only making what other people ask for?

That question became SAKAKI GEAR.

Not a factory brand. Not a subcontractor with a logo. A craftsman’s answer to the things that matter: objects made with precision, built to last, designed to be loved.

Every piece tells the story of where we came from.

In 2024, we launched our first lantern, “Akatsuki,” on crowdfunding. 657 backers. 11.5 million yen raised.

The following year, we released “Mahoroba.” 484 backers. 7.2 million yen raised.

We are a small factory. We always will be.

But the things we make carry everything we’ve learned, everything we’ve lost, and everything we still believe in.

“Every piece tells the story of where we came from.”

– Takashi Sakakibara, Founder, SAKAKI GEAR