Founder Sueyoshi Iwashimizu was born in 1887 in Sanno-cho, Morioka City.
Sueyoshi, whose father was a comb craftsman, was fascinated by the charm of Nambu ironware and became an apprentice under a Nambu ironware craftsman.
Sueyoshi soon distinguished himself and became known as a skilled engineer in the industry.
In 1902, after completing four years of training, Sueyoshi opened a business in the city.

Sueyoshi, who worked hard at making ironware, and his wife Shige, who supported him, were blessed with two sons and six daughters. The eldest son, Akiyoshi, started helping out in the family business at the age of 12, and the second son, Takiji, who is 7 years older, also worked together with his older brother to boost the family business. It is said that Ikichi inherited his father's craftsmanship, and that Takiji's cheerful disposition was very similar to his father's. The two, who were a good pair of personalities, divided their roles and worked together on the path to commercialization.

The Pacific War was a period of testing. Not only was Nanbu ironware completely banned as a luxury item, but even products that had already been produced were sold. Both Akiyoshi and Takiji were called up to work, and despite many hardships, they never gave up on producing ironware. In 1950, we established Iwashimizu Foundry and built a new factory.

With the production system in place, Yayoshi and Takiji will work on developing sales channels. With sales in Hokkaido, the iron kettle became an explosive hit, and the foundation for rock casting, which continues today, was laid. In the 1950s, Nanbu Tekki was forced to reduce production due to changes in lifestyle and the spread of alloys, but President Iyoshi quickly began developing crafts and daily necessities. In order to establish a mass production system through mechanization, we completed a new factory in Ichikawakubo.

The waves of high economic growth and the boom in crafts were also a tailwind, and in the 1960s the Nambu ironware industry was revived. At the Kawakubo factory, mass production was promoted using a belt conveyor system, and in the late 1940s, automation was achieved for the first time in the Nanbu ironware industry. Around this time, they began actively accepting tours of the manufacturing process, and the factory became established as one of Morioka City's tourist attractions. In 1971, a new factory was completed in Kamiioka, creating the Iioka Factory, the best in the industry with production lines ranging from casting to polishing.

The opportunity for our company to look overseas was Executive Director Takiji's participation in a trade show cruise to Europe. After a period of three years, Iwachu developed its own technology for painting ironware with colorful colors, and in the Heisei era, it began to expand overseas in earnest. The unprecedented coloring was well received in Europe, and a French tea specialty store received a request to make colorful teapots. Today, "IWACHU" is so pervasive that it has become synonymous with ironware in European retail stores.
From traditional Nanbu ironware to IWACHU around the world. The challenges continue.