About Toyota Toyota's
history
Introduction
Toyota
Motor Corporation (TMC) is a top ten Fortune Global 500¹ enterprise, and ranks am ong the world’s leading global corporations. Toyota is one
of the world's largest automobile manufacturers, selling 6.7
million models annually² on all five continents. Toyota is proud to be one of the
most admired carmakers of all time³; an achievement the company believes stems from a
dedication toward satisfying its customers. Like many enterprises that have made their
mark in history, Toyota has been shaped by a unique set of values and
principles that have their roots in the company’s formative
years in Japan.
 The
Toyota story begins in the late 19th century, when Sakichi Toyoda
invented Japan’s first power loom, which was to revolutionize the
country’s textile industry. In January 1918, Sakichi founded the
Toyoda Spinning and Weaving Company, and with the help of his son,
Kiichiro Toyoda, he fulfilled his lifelong dream of building an
automatic loom in 1924.
Two years later, he established Toyoda Automatic
Loom Works.
Like his father, Kiichiro was an innovator, and
during his visits to Europe and the U.S. in the 1920s he became deeply
interested in the nascent automotive industry. Making the most of the £100,000 that Sakichi
Toyoda received for selling the patent rights of his automatic loom,
Kiichiro laid the foundations of Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC), which
was established in 1937. From looms to cars, the Toyota experience has
been a constant story of extending the frontiers of manufacturing.
1.
As
published in the July 2003 edition of Fortune magazine.
2.
Including
Hino and Daihatsu brands.
3.
As
published in the February 2003 edition of Fortune magazine.
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