Amidst a continuing headwind of a weak yen, high raw material and logistics costs, and a shrinking domestic apparel market, we delve into the "qualitative changes" quietly underway in the textile trading industry. Textile trading companies, once characterized by terms like "taikai-kei" (highly competitive, sports-club-like) and "mouretsu" (intense), are transforming their human resource composition from a male-dominated, uniform structure to a diverse one. What's required is not just sales prowess, but the ability to conceive new businesses, understand sustainability and regulations, and compete internationally. It's not about abandoning the vigor of the "taikai-kei" culture, but grafting onto it the new strength of diversity. We analyze the transformation of each company through the lens of human resources. Purchase the print edition Purchase the digital edition Subscribe In "4 Topics to Understand Textile Trading Companies," we take a deep dive into the current state of the industry, starting with an "Industry Map" that provides an overview of 16 leading textile trading companies. The perennial feature "A Manager's Job" explores "how to work at a trading company and the reality of the apparel industry" through interviews with six managers who hold significant authority, akin to division commanders. Interviews with top executives are also substantial. Seven presidents—from Chori, Toyoshima, Stylem Takisada Osaka, Moririn, Yagi, Takisada Nagoya, and Takihyo—share their insights on industry consolidation, active investment in supply chains, global strategies, and work style reform and human resource development. Furthermore, the cover of this issue features a title created with embroidery. The base fabric is a hand-woven textile of mud-dyed pre-dyed cotton yarn by Enfant Terrible in Hachioji, Tokyo, and the embroidery was handled by Kasamori in Kiryu, which has produced unprecedented products like spherical embroidery. From overseas news, we report on an exhibition a