Selling 5000 glasses a month domestically:
When it’s an empty glass, secret of glass is not revealed yet.
When you pour beer into it, the secret reveals. The glass turns into Mt.Fuji of Japan!
Beer form looks as if it was a snow on the peak of Mt.Fuji. The glass will give you a feeling as if you own Mt.Fuji in your hand.
It’s a hand-made, hand-friendly glass. The glass is wrapped around by your hand with comfort.
The glass comes in the luxurious box of Paulownia. Please place it back to the box and take the glass out of the box every time you drink a beer. This will be your little ceremony for a tasty time with beer.
It became a popular item in the luxurious item market with a package with box of paulownia and unique concept of glass. Only after a year from the launch of product, it continuously grows the number of sales and now it sells about 5000 glasses a month in the domestic market.
The glass is sold only at the selected outlets including the Sugahara Glassworks INC. outlets and shops introducing a luxurious and well-designed lifestyle.
The glass is used at the high-end restaurants in some countries in Europe. However, it’s still a hidden jewel as a Japanese “new” souvenir.
Why don’t you become one of the owners of Mt.Fuji, the sacred mountain in Japan?
How Mt.Fuji glass was made:
The glass is originally designed by the designer, Keita Suzuki. His idea of making a Mt.Fuji glass was selected as a honorable mention (Mizuno Manabu award) at the Tokyo Midtown Award in 2008.
Judge of the award, Mr.Manabu Mizuno, Well-known art director in Japan has proposed the luxurious package with the box of Paulownia. The glass was moving forward step-by-step to launch in the Japanese market.
Mr.Sugahara of Sugahara Glassworks INC. expressed with honesty, “At first, I thought the production of Mt.Fuji glass will not be a troublesome process, rather an easy production”.
When artisan at Sugahara started with the production, that’s when they realize the production isn’t easy at all.
Melted glass of 1200 degrees will turn into the shape of glass when the artisan blows his breath into it. For Mt.Fuji glass, artisan blows the air into glass on metallic mold especially made for Mt.Fuji glass.
Edge of the glass at the foot of Mt.Fuji was not easily made as expected, so artisan needed to repeat try and error to make the ideal, beautiful shape of Mt.Fuji. We can say, Mt.Fuji glass is made with the professional breath of the artisan at Sugahara Glassworks.
Only 3 artisans can create Mt.Fuji glass at Sugahara Glassworks. That’s how difficult the technique is to create the glass.
Mt.Fuji is a well-demanded glass in the Japanese domestic market. Sugahara wants to deliver the glass to as many people as possible, but maintenance of the high quality of product ensured by skilled artisan is the first priority.
Glass is born in artisan-friendly environment
Artisan studio of Sugahara Glassworks INC. is located in the countryside of southern Boso Penninsula in Japan. About 50 artisans of young and old are producing their original glass products day and night.
Our interview was conducted in the middle of the hot summer day in August. It is not the best environment as a working condition, facing the 1200 degrees hot fire pit all day long. But the artisans are passionately and quietly making different products in the formed team. Their eyes looking at the glass is as if they are looking at their own children.
According to Mr.Sugahara, it is rare the artisan of glassworks company can engage in the process from product design and production itself. That’s the strength and also an attractiveness for the glassworks artisan. Because of the hard works, female artisan is rare, however, at Sugahara glassworks, many female artisan are happily working here.
At Sugahara artisan studio, they conduct the glass making lesson for kids and adult everyday. When you have a chance to drop by in Japan, you may want to try making your own glass.
Sugahara is a top class glassworks company with top class techniques, design and its corporate culture. Why don’t you add Mt.Fuji glass made by top quality glass maker to your collection and enjoy beer from it?
