Shojiro Ishibashi
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
After graduating from Kurume Commercial School in 1906, he and his elder brother took over the family tailoring business, Shimaya, abolished the apprentice system and introduced wages. In 1907 the business switched to making only tabi socks, and in 1918 he founded Nihon Tabi, perfecting rubber vulcanization technology with the Asahi rubber-soled work tabi in 1921. Around 1912, when he test-rode a car and bought one, there were about 300 cars in Tokyo and none in Kyushu. In March 1952 the Ishibashi family topped the nation in wealth tax filings.
Selection
He was the first President, with no predecessor. In December 1929 he built a temporary plant on the grounds of Nihon Tabi and began trial production of tires, and in March 1931 he spun off the tire department to found Bridgestone Tire in Kurume City, Fukuoka Prefecture. It was a family company wholly funded by the Ishibashi family, with capital of ¥1 million. The name rearranged Stone-Bridge, an English rendering of Ishibashi. While foreign tires sold for over ¥100 each, the company entered the market at half that price, ¥50.
Initiatives
Entering at a low price led to a string of early defects such as blowouts while driving, and because the company offered a responsibility guarantee system exchanging defective tires for new ones, returns reached 100,000 against production of 440,000 in its first three years. Losses over those three years exceeded ¥1 million, more than its capital. In 1934 it built a full-scale reinforced concrete plant in Kurume, and in 1951 it signed a technical tie-up with U.S.-based Goodyear. In 1955 it completed Japan's only tire cord plant, moving to integrated production, and in October 1961 it listed on the Tokyo and Osaka stock exchanges.
Career
Career
Bridgestone
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Mar 1931 | President |
| Feb 1963 | Representative Director, Chairman |
| Feb 1963 | Stepped down as President |