About Us
ITO BINDERY Co., Ltd.
ITO BINDERY is a bookbinding company founded in 1938, located in Sumida, Tokyo.
We began by making notebooks using sewing machines, and during Japan’s period of rapid economic growth, expanded our work to include the processing of catalogs and leaflets.
As the needs of the times have changed, we have continued to work with paper, building upon our bookbinding techniques.
Today, based on this experience, we develop our own products such as the Drawing Pad and Memo Block.
What we value is not adding unnecessary decoration, but carefully refining what is essential.
This approach has remained unchanged since our founding.
Many of our products are manufactured in our factory in Sumida, Tokyo.
Cutting / Binding / Finishing
All performed with care
Each step is carefully carried out by both machine precision and human hands, as we continue making our products.
In 2023, we opened a shop within our factory, creating a place where visitors can directly experience both the making process and the products. It is a space where the background of our craftsmanship can be felt.
More than 80 years since our founding, our approach to making things has remained the same. We will continue to make, one piece at a time, with care.
Our approach to craftsmanship is also introduced in VOICE.
Timeline
1938 Hakuchodo, a company that bound notebooks by hand, was founded by Haruo Ito in Tokyo’s Edogawa Ward
1957 Moved to Tokyo’s Sumida Ward, and the company name was changed to Ito Paper Factory (Ito Kami Kojo)
1982 The company name was changed to Ito Bindery. Norio Ito became the managing director
1988 A new company building was established. A saddle stitch production line was introduced, and there was a transition to book binding with increased production
2009 Our original stationery, the Drawing Pad and Memo Block, went on sale
2010 Awarded the Good Design Award
2011 Our stationery was carried at MoMA (New York Museum of Modern Art)
2013 Crafted for Lexus collaboration items went on sale
2014 Masaki Ito became the managing director
2017 Our stationery was carried at Margaret Howell (Europe and Japan)
2019 Our Notebook went on sale (Japan, North America, and Europe)
2023 Our storefront opened
2024 The Note Piece went on sale (Japan, North America, and Europe)
2025 The Calendar went on sale
Exhibitions
2010 Tenkei Project Product Exhibition 2010 (Suru Tokoro)
Design Tide Tokyo (Tokyo Big Sight)
2011 Gift Show Spring 2011 (Tokyo Big Sight)
Tenkei Project Product Exhibition Showcase 2011
(D&DEPARTMENT TOKYO)
Good Factory, Good Items Display
(MUJI Tokyo Midtown Branch, IDEE Jiyugaoka Branch)
*A joint exhibition between Muji, IDEE, and Tenkei Project
2012 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
Gift Show Spring 2012 (Tokyo Big Sight)
2013 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
Gift Show Spring 2013 (Tokyo Big Sight)
Tenkei Project Product Exhibition 2013 (koncent)
2014 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
Gift Show Spring 2014 (Tokyo Big Sight)
NY NOW (New York)
Japan Design 2014 Design no Oshiri Exhibition (Singapore)
2015 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
Gift Show Spring 2015 (Tokyo Big Sight)
NY NOW (New York)
2016 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
NY NOW (New York)
Gift Show Autumn (Tokyo Big Sight)
2017 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
NY NOW (New York)
Interior Lifestyle Exhibition (Tokyo Big Sight)
2018 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
NY NOW (New York)
2019 Maison＆Objet (Paris)
NY NOW (New York)
Interior Lifestyle Exhibition (Tokyo Big Sight)
2020 MOM – Maison & Objet and more (Online Exhibition)
2021 Te Te Te Traders Expo (Spiral Hall)
2022 MAISON & OBJET meets JAPANESE DESIGN & CRAFT
(Nihonbashi Takashimaya)
Dai Nippon Ichi Exhibition,
Jointly Sponsored by Nakagawa Masashichi Shoten（EBiS303）
2023 Shoppe Object (New York)
Dai Nippon Ichi Exhibition,
Jointly Sponsored by Nakagawa Masashichi Shoten（EBiS303）
Maison & Objet – Misc Booth (Paris)
2024 Ambiente (Frankfurt)
Shoppe Object – SAIKAI Booth (New York)
Stationery Fest – Hightide USA Booth (New York)
Maison＆Objet – Misc Booth (Paris)
2025 Shoppe Object – SAIKAI Booth (New York)
EXTRA PREVIEW #30（NEW PIER HALL）
EXTRA PREVIEW #31（KANDA SQUARE）
Maison＆Objet – Misc Booth (Paris)
Company Information
Company Name Ito Bindery Co., Ltd.
Managing Director Masaki Ito
Founded 1938
Capital Stock 15,000,000 yen
Number of Employees 7
Factory Size First Floor : Approx. 231.4m²
Second Floor : Approx. 165.3m²
Address 130-0004 2-16-9 Honjo, Sumida-ku, Tokyo
TEL：03-3622-8865 FAX：03-3622-8893
Hours of Operation 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM
Closed Saturdays, Sundays, and National Holidays
Location
A 10-minute walk from Asakusa Station on the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line
A 5-minute walk from Honjo-Azumabashi Station or Asakusa Station on the Toei Asakusa Line
A 10-minute walk from Kuramae Station on the Toei Oedo Line
A 20-minute walk from Ryogoku Station on the JR Sobu Line