Behind The Brand: Porter - Yoshida & Co.

The history of Yoshida & Co. begins in 1935, when the brand's creator, Kichizo Yoshida, created Yoshida Kaban Seisakujo (Yoshida Bag Works). A few years into his business, war broke out, and Yoshida was drafted into the military, effectively halting all production for the foreseeable future. During this time, Yoshida's wife Chika gathered all of his production tools and textiles and stored them in a secure place to prevent them from being destroyed by the war.

Fast forward to 1951; the war is over and everybody throughout every sector is now starting to look to the future. Yoshida Kaban Seisakujo is reformed as Yoshida & Co., Ltd. and Yoshida product is starting to make a name for itself, becoming highly recognised for its innovative approach to design, implementing new features and modern functionality never before seen in a luggage item. The world is now different and demand for products that offer more is a necessity, something Yoshida has always strived to provide within his products.

In 1962, PORTER was launched as the first private label from Yoshida & Co. with the focus being on connecting customers with the manufacturer of their product by providing more transparency on production methods, materials and design processes. An area that Yoshida thought was overlooked and almost hidden by other manufacturers at the time.

Since then, they have gone on to run production for over 1,500 bag styles bags with over 130 different sub-lines, creating products suitable for each and every occasion that are finished using premium fabrics, innovative hardware and production methods that move with the modern world.

One of the most pivotal moments in Yoshida & Co. history, was the release of their ‘Tanker’ series of bags in 1983. Drawing inspiration from MA-1 flight jackets that were produced for the U.S. military, Porter went on to develop their own three-layer nylon fabric that is protective, durable and visually captivating, enabling them to manufacture a product that portrays the vision Yoshida & Co. set out to achieve with the conception of Porter.

The ‘Tanker’ series consists of over 60 unique models in an array of military inspired colours. We are proud to be able to offer a curated selection of items from this series here at Sonder Supplies.