PREFACE

This autobiography was first published in Japan in 1997. No one was more surprised than I at its success: All it does is recount in a down-to-earth manner the story of how one particular Japanese wooden-model manufacturer evolved into the maker of plastic models that it is today. When I first joined Tamiya forty years ago I was just a junior member of staff; I went on to become the president of the company, but one thing has never changed: My passion for model-making. That is the subject of this book. So anyone looking for an over-heated, self-congratulatory business success story had best look elsewhere! Looking back over my career, I have much to be grateful for. I have been especially fortunate in the people I have worked with; my father who indulgently allowed me to pursue business and research in Europe, America and Southeast Asia; David Binger and all the other overseas distributors who worked in such close partnership with us and whose passion sustains the extended "Tamiya Family" to this day; finally there are the employees of Tamiya, both past and present, whose numbers have grown from less than fifty when I joined the firm to the current several hundred. Inspired by the commitment "First in Quality Around the World," we have worked together to build Tamiya into the world-famous company that it is today. I extend my sincerest thanks to all of you.

Shunsaku Tamiya Shizuoka, September 2001