Nagasakido Castella in a can
Ships to cake
Araki Genshiro, the founder of Nagasakido, started working at the Nagasaki Shipyard and Machinery Works of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. in 1887 up until his retirement at the age of 51. Then he started a successful career as an entrepreneur. His acquaintance with Thomas Blake Glover led him to introduce the use of the fishing trawlers to the fishing industry of Nagasaki. Also he advised the invention of an accumulator fishing light to the present Shin-Kobe Electric Machinery Co., Ltd. Genshiro's unique ideas and aggressiveness was the key to his success.
About 400 years ago, Western confectioneries started crossing the East China Sea and arrived in Japan. One of the most popular confectioneries was Castella; sponge cake. Genshiro began his Castella business in 1919 in Senba-cho, Nagasaki (present Oohato). In 1923 he established a limited partnership corporation "Nagasakido" and was the first to introduce Castella to Osaka. The main shop opened in Tenjinbashi-minamizume but business wasn't easy in a city where people were not yet familiar with what Castella was.
Why not can it?
Genshiro worked very hard to come up with a Nagasakido special recipe. He struggled to maintain the taste of freshly baked Castella as long as possible. In 1933 he invented the "canned Castella" which enabled him to maintain the quality.
He soon became a patent holder for "Canned food" which was a very unique idea to the general public. It was especially appreciated by soldiers at war and parties climbing the Himalayans because thanks to the Castella in a can, they were able to enjoy a fresh nutritious treat wherever they were. Imagine how the sweet and delicious smell when opening the can could make a tired person so happy.
All time classic - Nagasakido Castella
In 1982 they made a replication of the classical Castella. A famous writer, Mushanokouji Saneatsu was a big fan of the rich flavor of the organic-iodine rich egg and finest sugar. And even today, the Nagasakido Castella is a safe, nutritious and delicious treat that is enjoyed by people of all ages.
Establishment / 1919Founder / Araki Genshiro
Place of Establishment / Senba-cho, Nagasaki
Current company name / Nagasakido Co., Ltd. (main shop:2-1-29 Shinsaibashi-suji Chuo-ku, Osaka tel:+81-6-6211-0551)
http://www.nagasakido.com (in Japanese only)
