Iida Tetsusaburo

• Born: 1859
• Died: 1944
• Other Names: 飯田新七 (Iida Shinshichi)
• Japanese: 飯田鉄三郎 (Iida Tetsusaburou)

Iida Tetsusaburô was the fourth head of the Takashimaya corporation, which was begun by his grandfather, Iida Shinshichi I, as a secondhand clothing shop in 1831.

Tetsusaburô was one of five sons of Iida Shinshichi II and his wife Iida Utako. He inherited control of the company from his older brother Iida Shinshichi III in 1888, and placed his younger brother Iida Tojirô in charge of the company's exports division. Tojirô then created within his division a studio where artists, including Takeuchi Seihô and members of the Kyoto Young Painters Study Group, produced designs for tapestries and other high-end textiles.

The following year, in 1889, Tetsusaburô traveled to Europe and the United States. During this trip, among many other activities, he attended the Exposition Universalle in Paris. He took on the name Iida Shinshichi IV during his time as president of Takashimaya, from 1888-1919, and again from 1927-1942. His brother Masanosuke (1863-1939) served as president in the intervening time. The final brother, Tasaburô (1874-1919), was sent by the company to Lyons in 1897, though little is known about his career otherwise.

Tetsusaburô (Shinshichi IV) was also, like his predecessors, involved in the art world, and frequently served as a member of the Kyoto jury which determined which artworks would be sent to expositions; Takashimaya frequently won awards for the pieces it showed at these competitions.

References

• Conant, Ellen. "Cut from Kyoto Cloth: Takeuchi Seihô and his Artistic Milieu." Impressions 33 (2012). pp76, 91.