BookTitleToyota Tsusho 70-Year History

Summary

Toyota Tsusho 70-Year History

Dallas Office building around 1953Dallas Cottonfield in 19455 Establishment of Networks in the U.S.In October 1953, a Dallas Office was established in Texas to purchase cottonfor Japan. Although Toyo Menka; Nichimen Co., Ltd. (currently Sojitz Corp.);and Gosho Co., Ltd. (currently Kanematsu Corp.), had entered the market, ToyotaTsusho’s immediate predecessor, Nisshin Tsusho, built up a track record byhaving its employees stationed in the local office inspect products to be shipped tothereby ensuring that Toyoda Tsusho was importing only quality products.In October 1960, Toyoda New York, Inc. (later Toyoda America, Inc.), wasestablished with $1,000 capital. This was done because Toyoda Tsusho was theintermediary for the purchase of U.S.-made machinery made with a loan fromthe Japan Import-Export Bank, the company’s then point of contact, and hadreceived a request from the U.S. manufacturer to submit a letter of credit. Also inJanuary 1961, Toyoda Tsusho signed an agency contract with Landis, the leadingmanufacturer of special grinders, which led to the launch of Toyoda Tsusho’sImport Machinery Department.In April 1961, the import of cotton was liberalized, and import volume graduallydecreased. Because of this, the Dallas Office was closed in 1986, and its businesswas taken over by Toyoda Tsusho’s local subsidiary, Toyoda America, Inc.6 Establishment of Networks in Central and South AmericaIn October 1957, an office was opened in Mexico to support the activitiesof Toyoda de Mexico S.A., which had been established by Toyoda AutomaticLoom Works, Ltd. However, the office closed in 1959 due to domestic untenablecircumstances in Mexico.Offices were opened in Caracas, Venezuela, in August 1961 and in BuenosAires, Argentina, in June 1962 as exports of Honda motorcycles to Central andSouth America had increased rapidly and textile machinery and bearings were alsoconsidered promising. In Argentina, however, the revolutionary government thatemerged banned motorcycle imports, and the Buenos Aires Office was moved toLima, Peru.In November 1963, when Toyota Motor Co., Ltd., established Toyota do BrasilIndustria e Comercio Limitada in Sao Paulo for local assembly of Land Cruisers,Toyoda Tsusho took the opportunity to also open an office in Sao Paulo. Theoffice engaged in materials trading and cultivated the Central and South Americanmarkets. In August 1964, the office was upgraded to subsidiary status andSociedade Comercial Toyoda Tsusho Do Brasil Ltda was established to expandthe textile machinery, power tool, and light machinery markets.Moreover, overseas offices were established in April 1965 in GuayaquilEcuador, and in Trinidad and Tobago. The Trinidad and Tobago Office closed inOctober 1968 but resumed business in March 1978.7 Establishment of Networks in AfricaIn September 1962, an office was established in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya,and the selling of spinning machines and other products began in three East Africancountries, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.In 1961, 120 textile machines made by Toyoda Automatic Loom Works wereexported to Rhodesia (via North Rhodesia and South Rhodesia, currently Zambiaand Zimbabwe) as a set with a dyeing plant from Wakayama Iron Works. In October1964, an office was established in Johannesburg to expand business in South Africa.60