|
|
 |
|
 |
 |
Chapter 06. Chubei's Sorrow |
|
The proprietor of Kobayashi Daiyakubou, the
company that had made inroads in Osaka, was Fusagoro, Chubei's third
son. He had received his training in Osaka and was the favored choice.Chubei
had three successors. His second son, Yonejiro took the name of the
Fujii family, owners of the Ryukakusan Hompo in Tokyo, when he married.
His eldest son Kichitaro was responsible for the head office in Nagoya,
and his third son was ideally placed in Osaka.
Yet tragedy can strike at any time, and Fusagoro met with an untimely
death in the prime of his life on April 23, 1919. He was only 38.
 Fusagoro,
the third child of Chubei and his wife Kaki, was born on December
30, 1882. He had been a dynamic merchant, with none of the timidity
of a youngest child. As Fusagoro had been the publisher of Chubei's
"Eisei Seidai Shimbun (Grand Health News)", it had been his role to
grasp and realize the ideas that streamed from Chubei.
It was a terrible tragedy, of a depth few others can appreciate, for
Chubei to lose his beloved son so unexpectedly. However, he turned
to the ever-reliable Kichitaro, and there was still Fusagoro's wife
Sue and their daughter Kisako.
Chubei decided at this point to shift the core of business activities
to Osaka, the location of his flagship store. As his first move in
this direction, Kobayashi Seidaidou and Kobayashi Daiyakubou were
merged on August 22, 1919, forming a single company. The new company
was called Kobyashi Daiyakubou Co., Ltd. (Osaka) and Kichitaro took
office as president. He was transferred to Osaka from Nagoya, and
what had been to that point the head office in Nagoya became a branch
office.
Administration of the branch office in Nagoya was taken over by Chubei
and Sue. Later, Muneji, the second son of the Kobayashi brewing family
in Tochigi, makers of "Toranoko" sake, was adopted into the family
through marriage with Kisako, and welcomed to management. Then in
December 1946, the company separated and became the independent Kobayashi
Daiyakubou Co., Ltd. (Nagoya).
Created in Nagoya and with its base of operations shifted to Osaka,
Kobayashi Seidaidou established its roots completely in Osaka through
this 40-year period. |
|
