Nanga

Nanga began in 1941 as Yokota Sewing, a futon-making business founded by Akira Yokota in Shiga Prefecture, with its first factory at Motoichiba in Maibara City. The company spent decades as a contract manufacturer, expanding in 1950 to handle sewing work for major futon makers. Its shift toward outdoor gear came in 1988, when a major Japanese outdoor brand commissioned it to produce sleeping bags — work that drew on the same down-filling and sewing expertise built up in the futon trade. In 1995 the company adopted the name Nanga, after Nanga Parbat, one of the Himalayas' most difficult peaks, signaling its move into serious outdoor equipment. Down jackets followed in 2002, and by 2003 Nanga had introduced its Aurora Down Jacket, the model that established the brand's reputation for down insulation outside Japan. The company has since collaborated with other Japanese labels, including supplying down jackets developed jointly with the Tokyo apparel brand Natal Design, extending its futon-era sewing know-how into contemporary outdoor and streetwear collections.