Hamano Hikaku Kogei HAMANO

The roots of Hamano Hikaku Kogei trace back to the Hamano family's workshop, which made leather goods in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, in the Meiji era. In an age when Western culture was beginning to flow in, it took up handbag-making early and kept researching forms suited to the Japanese physique and dress.

In time, its fine material selection and refined design won recognition, and it came to make many bags as gifts to the Imperial Household. Without relying on flashy logos or ornamentation, HAMANO's bags radiate a quiet presence through silhouette and leather texture, building trust in formal settings.

Today, based at its Karuizawa factory, it carries out design, cutting, sewing and finishing in-house while also offering a wide range of everyday items such as tote bags, shoulder bags, wallets and leather goods. In recent years it is active in new challenges too, such as the "Flot" series using waterproof leather and sustainable items incorporating apple-derived material.

Its online shop, in addition to a rich lineup from formal to daily, is also full of care methods, a formal-bag selection guide, columns and more. It delivers the craftsmanship handed down since its founding in a form close to modern lifestyles.

Founded in 1880, a brand carrying on a history of gifts to the Imperial Household

Ever since its founding in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, in the Meiji era, Hamano Hikaku Kogei has continued making handbags for over roughly 140 years. Favored even by royal families around the world and known as a gift to the Imperial Household, its formal bags are chosen as fine pieces passed down across generations.

Design for "beautifully dressing Japanese women"

HAMANO's bags are designed not merely to be luxurious but to "make the carrier look their most beautiful." Ingenuity is applied throughout to make even the user's movements look beautiful — a handle shape that doesn't dig into the shoulder, a gusset design that looks tidy even when loaded.

Integrated production and artisan handwork at the Karuizawa factory

At the Karuizawa factory, set in the nature-rich environment of Miyota Town, Nagano, it carries out integrated making from cutting to sewing and finishing. By skiving the leather thin and adjusting the balance with the core material, it achieves a light, supple feel that is formal yet easy to carry. It carefully protects the processes that require a master artisan's intuition.

A rich collection to choose by scene, from formal to daily

It offers a diverse lineup — from a formal line for entrance and graduation ceremonies, exams and ceremonial occasions, to business totes you can rely on for commuting, shoulder and handbags just right for weekend outings, and leather goods such as wallets and card cases. From life's milestones to everyday dress, you'll find a piece for a long relationship.