The results of the 2026 Modern Sword Craftsmen Exhibition have been announced, covering the categories of polishing, blade engraving, metal carving, shirasaya, sword mountings, tsuka wrapping, and habaki making.　For sword craftsmen, the results of this exhibition represent an evaluation of the skills they have devoted themselves to refining over the past year.　I personally know many craftsmen—both those I regularly work with and those with whom I have close relationships—who dedicate themselves every day with the goal of winning a special prize. Because of this, I believe each craftsman received the results with mixed emotions, experiencing both joy and disappointment.　Among them, I am especially pleased to share that polisher Kawakami Yōichirō, who worked together with us at Token Matsumoto for five years, received the highest award in the Shinogi-zukuri polishing division: the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award.　Although he has been extremely busy since becoming independent, he still makes time once a month to help us. He carefully removes minor hike-kizu and small rust spots from swords in our collection.　I have had many opportunities to observe his work up close. Spending a full day watching him polish swords, I have witnessed firsthand his sincere dedication to sword polishing and his extraordinary concentration.　That is why this award feels so well deserved. It is the result of years of steady effort and commitment. I am truly happy for him and deeply proud of his achievement.　When we heard the news, everyone on our staff was overjoyed.

At the Noda-kai, a trade-only sword auction that I organize, we hold study sessions every other month to help improve the knowledge and expertise of young and mid-career sword dealers who participate in the auction. For these sessions, we invite Nakahara sensei, a respected Japanese sword scholar who has served as a lecturer at many sword study groups. This time, Nakahara sensei gave a practical lecture from the perspective of a sword dealer, covering topics such as how to evaluate unsigned swords attributed to the Hokke school, as well as important points regarding suriage and koshirae. In our industry, what you know—or do not know—directly affects your business. The ability to judge authenticity and accurately assess value requires continuous study and years of experience. That is why every participant listened to the lecture with great focus and seriousness. After the session, I received many words of appreciation from the participants, which made me feel that hosting these study sessions is truly worthwhile. I sincerely hope that each sword dealer will continue to refine both knowledge and discernment, and grow into the next generation of professionals who will support and preserve the Japanese sword industry.

We held the 20th Nishikasai Token Ichi, our quarterly Japanese sword fair, at our Tokyo Nishikasai shop from June 10 to June 14. Since opening our new shop in July 2021, we have continued to hold this event every three months, and we are delighted to have reached this milestone 20th edition. During the event, we welcomed not only our regular customers, but also many familiar collectors who visit us every three months, as well as overseas collectors traveling in Japan. The shop was lively throughout the event. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all of our customers for their continued support, which has made this achievement possible. We will continue to stay true to our original mission and strive to create a shop that collectors and enthusiasts will always want to visit again. We look forward to seeing you at the next Nishikasai Token Ichi!

Although the regular Nodakai Sword Auction is held at our Noda headquarters on the 3rd and 19th of every month, the June 3 meeting is a special annual event held at a hotel venue as a way of expressing our appreciation to the sword dealers who regularly support and attend Nodakai. On the evening before the auction, we held a banquet to strengthen friendships among participants. This year, everyone enjoyed a special performance by Keiko, a pole dancer and magician who holds the title of World Pole Dance Champion. There was concern that Typhoon No. 6, accompanied by extremely strong winds, might make a direct impact on the morning of June 3. Fortunately, the situation was not as severe as feared, and more than fifty sword dealers attended, as they do each year. The auction featured many attractive items, including Juyo Token blades, a tsuba by Shoami Denbei, and numerous fresh-to-the-market pieces. Thanks to the enthusiastic participation of the attendees, the event concluded successfully and in a lively atmosphere. Our staff spent two busy days preparing for and managing the event, but it was a rewarding and fulfilling experience for all of us.

The 5th Morioka Token Ichi was held for three days starting on Friday, May 22, at Kioxia Aiina (Iwate Prefectural Information Exchange Center). As this was our fifth event, we once again did our best to make it a success by advertising in local newspapers and on social media. However, the dates unfortunately coincided with the “Tohoku Kizuna Festival,” one of the largest festivals in the Tohoku region, bringing together major festivals from all six Tohoku prefectures and attracting around 300,000 visitors. Because of traffic restrictions and parking lot closures near the venue, many sword enthusiasts found it difficult to visit, and sales were disappointing. While I was feeling discouraged, I was encouraged by a visitor who had come all the way from Aomori and told me, “I check your website every day.” Later, when visitor traffic slowed and we began packing up earlier than expected, 94-year-old Mukansa swordsmith Yamaguchi Kiyofusa kindly stopped by to see us. His visit gave me great encouragement. This year’s Morioka Token Ichi reminded me once again how difficult it can be to organize and run a sword exhibition and sales event.

The All Japan Sword Dealers Association held its 39th General Meeting on May 17 at the Tokyo Art Club. The association currently has 151 members. Under the new leadership of Mr. Yoshio Iida of Iida Kōendō, who was elected chairman during last year’s board member election, the business report for fiscal year 2025 and the business plan for fiscal year 2026 were approved. I sincerely hope that the sword industry will continue to develop in a healthy manner and that sword dealers throughout Japan will prosper in their businesses. As for myself, I was relieved to successfully fulfill my role as master of ceremonies and finally be free from the tension of the occasion.

The 5th Yamagata Sword Fair was held for three days from April 24 (Friday) at Yamagata Big Wing. With this event, we have now reached our fifth annual gathering. With each year, we have had the pleasure of welcoming more familiar faces. In addition to visitors from Yamagata City and the surrounding area, many returning sword enthusiasts came from within the prefecture—such as Yonezawa and Shonai—as well as from neighboring Sendai. We feel that we are gradually gaining recognition among local collectors, which is greatly encouraging.  Going forward, the event will be held twice a year, every six months, with the next fair scheduled for October this year. We will continue to make every effort so that you can look forward to our future events.

We held the 19th Nishikasai Token Ichi at our Tokyo Nishikasai shop for five days starting Wednesday, March 25.

In addition to our regular customers, we were pleased to welcome many first-time visitors. This time, however, the weekend coincided with “Katanaza,” one of the largest sword fairs in western Japan held at Osaka Castle, so we felt that the number of visitors over the weekend was somewhat lower than usual.

On the other hand, this gave us the opportunity to spend more time speaking in depth with each customer who visited, which we truly appreciated.

We will continue to do our very best in the circumstances we are given, without ever becoming complacent.

March 13 (Friday) to March 15, we held the 8th Sendai Sword Exhibition and Sale at Yumemesse Miyagi. With each event, the number of familiar customers continues to grow, and many visitors remembered us, which led to many enjoyable conversations.

Although the number of Sendai local swords on display was smaller than usual this time, many sword enthusiasts were able to find pieces they liked and we were pleased to see several of them purchased.

The event remained lively throughout and became a very fulfilling sword exhibition. However, unfortunately, some of our staff, including myself, suffered from food poisoning, and we struggled with poor health during the latter half of the event. I regret that there may have been moments when we were not able to provide the level of service we would have liked.

Going forward, we will pay closer attention to maintaining our health so that we can welcome everyone in the best possible condition.

To let more people know about us, we have installed an illuminated advertising sign on the platform at Nishi-Funabashi Station on the Tozai Line. Nishi-Funabashi Station is a major terminal station served not only by the Tokyo Metro Tozai Line, but also by the JR Sobu Line, Musashino Line, Keiyo Line, and the Toyo Rapid Railway. We had previously placed illuminated platform signs at our nearest station, Nishi-Kasai (Tozai Line), as well as at Urayasu Station, where rapid trains stop. Gradually, we have seen an increasing number of visitors telling us they “came after seeing the station sign.” We will continue doing our best to welcome many more valued customers!

We held the 14th Koriyama Token Ichi, sword exhibition and sale for three days from Friday, February 13, at Big Palette Fukushima. We even received inquiries such as, “The exhibition list hasn’t arrived yet…,” so we promptly sent the information to our customers by express mail. Although our schedule was very busy and hectic, many familiar visitors came not only from various parts of Fukushima Prefecture but also from Iwate, Miyagi, and Ibaraki, and the venue was lively every day. We are filled with gratitude. We were again interviewed by the local newspapers Fukushima Minpo and Fukushima Minyu, and an article appeared in the morning edition on Saturday the 14th. All of our staff will continue striving to make the Koriyama Token Ichi an event that is appreciated by the local community.

We have partnered with the nearby parking facility “Pico Parking Nishi-Kasai 6-chome,” located close to our Tokyo Nishi-Kasai shop. On the map, our shop is on the 3rd floor of the building that houses the sushi izakaya “Sugidama（杉玉）.” The affiliated parking lot is marked with a ℗ symbol (next to the docomo shop). If you visit us by car, please park there, obtain a parking certificate, and present it when you arrive at our store. We look forward to welcoming more of your visits.

The 26th Noda Token Ichi was held for three days starting on Friday, January 23, as usual at Business Hotel Noda. January 24, during the event, marked a very special occasion: it was the 90th birthday (Sotsuju) of my father and company founder, Tomio Matsumoto. He stayed active and energetically engaged in business throughout all three days of the fair. For this event, we made a strong effort in promotion. Announcements were placed in the community-based free paper “Chiiki Shimbun” across 17 local areas, as well as on Facebook. In addition, station posters were displayed at six stations within Noda City on the Tobu Noda Line, and at three major nearby stations. Thanks to these efforts, the fair was lively and bustling, welcoming both long-time regular customers and many new visitors. It was a very busy and successful three-day event.