Goro Sannomiya
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
Goro Sannomiya was born in 1899, graduated from Nagasaki Higher Commercial School, and joined the automobile plant of Tokyo Ishikawajima Shipyard in 1923. In April 1937 the company's automobile department merged with the automobile department of Tokyo Gas Electric Industry and DAT Automobile Manufacturing to form Tokyo Automobile Industries, which later became Isuzu Motors. An administrator with a commercial school background, he was Senior Managing Director before becoming President. At the end of April 1961, near the end of his tenure, the major shareholders were financial institutions such as Nomura Securities with 5.4% and Toyo Trust and Banking with 5.1%; he was not a president backed by a particular family's stake.
Selection
On December 11, 1946, President Yasushi Yuge, who had announced his intention to resign in the midst of a labor dispute, stepped down, and Senior Managing Director Goro Sannomiya succeeded him at 47. At the same time Managing Director Naomichi Kusunoki was promoted to Senior Managing Director. Midway through the shift from halted military production back to civilian demand, Diesel Motor Industry had announced the TX80 and TU8L gasoline trucks that November and entered mass production, and while restoring the air-raid-damaged assembly plant and engine test plant at the Tsurumi works, it launched 17 authorized Isuzu dealers.
Initiatives
The company listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in May 1949 and in July changed its name to Isuzu Motors, aligning the company name with its trademark. In February 1953 it signed a technical assistance agreement with Britain's Rootes for the Hillman and entered passenger car production, achieving full domestic production in October 1957. In August 1959 it unveiled the Elf small truck. Net sales grew from ¥9.1 billion in the fiscal year ended April 1953 to ¥60.0 billion in FY ended April 1961. On December 30, 1961, with the Fujisawa plant about to begin full operation, he died suddenly in office of a myocardial infarction.
Career
Career
Tokyo Ishikawajima Shipbuilding
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| 1923 | Joined as Automotive Plant |
Isuzu Motors
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Dec 1946 | President |
| Dec 1961 | 社長在任のまま死去 (translation pending) |
References 2
References (Japanese primary sources)
- いすゞ自動車50年史（いすゞ自動車株式会社社史編集委員会編、いすゞ自動車、1988年4月）
- 株式会社年鑑 昭和37年版（1962年）「いすゞ自動車」