OUR STORY

Frequently, we have found friends from other countries asking us, “Where should we go to experience Japanese culture?” However, we realized that we were unable to recommend any venues where a non-Japanese speaker could enjoy an authentic Japanese experience. This feeling of consternation transformed into the impetus for creating TOKI.

Upon further investigation, we found authentic Japanese culture scenes to be very difficult to access, even for Japanese natives. They aren’t advertised to the public, but rather tucked away in a hidden world where there are many layers of exclusivity, and reaching that world is often impossible without a personal connection or a referral.

Over the years, we have been fortunate enough to develop relationships with the very best cultural artisans and craftsmen, whom we proudly introduce our guests to. These are top-level artisans and craftsmen who eat, drink, and breathe their craft, which is also their livelihood. While these artisans tend to be the most difficult to reach, we realize that the depth and quality of their experiences are incomparable.

Through TOKI’s experiences, our guests meet master artisans, in turn allowing the artisans’ stories to reach public consciousness. TOKI’s partnerships with the artisans allow them share their unique expertise while educating and inspiring our guests. Witnessing the artisans at work, our guests gain a deeper understanding of Japan and experience Japanese culture beyond the surface - on an emotional and even spiritual level.

By connecting our guests with our partners, TOKI hopes to preserve what is most precious to Japan: its culture. We were struck by the fact that many aspects of Japanese traditional culture are threatened, and could even disappear within today’s globalized world. TOKI was created to give traditional industries a new opportunity to introduce their culture to new markets. By making them accessible to foreigners eager to experience them, these threatened industries would be able to profit through new opportunities.

We hope that we will be able to foster a world where Japan’s culture and philosophies are greater appreciated and preserved, which we believe will generate new inspiration and keep the world interesting.

We also realize that for many overseas visitors, their time in Japan is limited. It is for this reason that we felt compelled to develop a way for guests to enjoy a convenient, yet unique and invaluable sample of traditional Japanese culture, even in the heart of urban Japan.