Itochu Corporation is pleased to announce the launch of the MOTTAINAI Umbrella Project starting Wednesday, June 11, 2009, as part of the MOTTAINAI Campaign. The Project will be releasing ten types of umbrellas designed by renowned creative and pop artists. The umbrellas will be sold at the MOTTAINAI SHOP (Web shop: http://mottainai-shop.jp/) and a number of commercial facilities, and Spiral in Aoyama, Tokyo will open a store and gallery to exhibit and sell the full range. The project will also collaborate with Shibukasa (operated by SOL, a team of social entrepreneurs) that rents out umbrellas free of charge in Shibuya, Tokyo.

The umbrellas will include ten types of original umbrellas designed by the renowned advertising and design artists Michihiko Yanai and Bunpei Yorifuji, and by eight pop artists such as Moe Oshikiri and Audrey. The MOTTAINAI Campaign office will also be offering its own design.

According to an estimate by the Japan Umbrella Promotion Association, Japan is the world's largest umbrella consumer, using approximately 130 million umbrellas each year . It is believed that 90% of these are clear plastic umbrellas. The MOTTAINAI Umbrella Project was founded in response to the question, “Where do all these plastic umbrellas go? That is MOTTAINAI!” The MOTTAINAI staff concluded that encouraging ownership of umbrellas that people will be more inclined to look after would resolve the issue of people dispensing with their umbrellas so readily. The project then asked renowned artists who empathized with this idea to create original designs, resulting in ten types of MOTTAINAI umbrellas.

The project will also collaborate with Shibukasa, a group that promotes the recycling and reuse of plastic umbrellas in the Shibuya area, as a measure for plastic umbrellas that tend to be popular because of their low prices. The MOTTINAI campaign will recycle the plastic umbrellas through the MOTTAINAI Flea Market, and offer them to Shibukasa. Recycled plastic umbrellas will bear stickers identifying the collaboration of MOTTAINAI and Shibukasa, and will be reused.

Itochu plans to actively promote an apparel brand under the MOTTAINAI Umbrella Project and will collaborate with retail stores to introduce the MOTTAINAI lifestyle to as many consumers as possible.

Summary of the MOTTAINAI Umbrella Project