About Sangetsu
As of 31 December 2019, Sangetsu Corporation owns 100% of Goodrich Global Holdings Pte Ltd.
Both companies are giants in wallcoverings, flooring materials and fabric industries in their own respective countries. Goodrich Global is a recognized and respected market leader having its forte in delivering interior and architectural solutions with its range of wallcoverings, flooring materials and fabrics in Asia. Sangetsu Corporation is the leader in the same industry in Japan and is presently pursuing rapid expansion globally through strategic acquisition.
The working relationship between Sangetsu Corporation and Goodrich Global Holdings goes back more than 20 years. Over those years, Sangetsu Corporation has proven to be a stable and potential long term partner. Sangetsu Corporation views this acquisition as an excellent opportunity to pursue its global business expansion and entrench itself firmly in the distribution network in Asia.
About Sangetsu Corporation
Sangetsu Corporation (Sangetsu) was originally founded in Japan around 1849 during the Edo Era, when the Shogunate government still existed. Its core business was being an installer of paper sliding doors and other traditional Japanese interior products for Nagoya Castle. Soon afterwards, Sangetsu expanded its business scope to include the wholesale and distribution of materials to be used for such installations.
In 1953, the four brothers of the founding Hibi Family transformed Sangetsu from a family owned business to a stock company. Sangetsu was subsequently listed on the Japanese stock exchange in 1980 and grew to become the largest interior product company in Japan. Sangetsu is handling all kinds of interior products; from wallcoverings to flooring materials and fabrics to window films. During this time, even after becoming a publicly traded company, the management of Sangetsu Corporation was still controlled by the Hibi Family, until as recently as 2014, when the last of the Hibi brothers stepped away from the day-to-day management of the company and Shosuke Yasuda, succeeded as the CEO of Sangetsu.
One of Sangetsu’s most important initiatives is the penetration and development of markets outside Japan. However, interior product business tends to be a localized business. Sales and marketing activities are closely tied to each market with specifiers and customers having histories and experiences unique to that market. Therefore, Sangetsu Corporation has been looking for the right partner in other attractive markets.
Based on this business philosophy and strategy, Sangetsu has acquired Koroseal Interior Products last year. Koroseal has 20 – 25% share of wallcoverings for the contract market in USA and its subsidiary, Metro has 65% share in Canada.
Sangetsu Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops and sells interior decorating products in China and internationally. It operates showrooms in Shinagawa, Nagoya, Osaka, Fukuoka, Sendai, Kanazawa, Okayama, Hiroshima, and Okinawa.
