There are NO fake Tokaido uniforms.

[JohnASE]

In another thread, someone referenced a wiki on Tokaido gi (uniforms), so I checked it out. It mentioned "fake" Tokaido gi in a note. I thought I'd correct what I believe to be false information by posting here, for the record, on Karate Forums.

As far as I know, there are no fake Tokaido uniforms. There are Tokaido uniforms that are not made in Japan, but they are not fake. They were made with the full knowledge and consent of the original Tokaido company. When they first came out, some people thought they were unauthorized and falsely called them counterfeit. Others knew they were authorized, but called them fake just because they weren't made in Japan.

Our company, ASE Martial Arts Supply, was involved in the development and distribution of what I believe to be the first Tokaido gi made outside of Japan. This must have been over 15 years ago. We didn't design the gi, but we helped with some of the specs and developed the names and logos for them. At the time, we were told that this was done under the supervision of Tokaido in Japan. Shortly after, this was confirmed when Sugiura-san, one of the sons of the founder of Tokaido, visited our location here in California and met with my father. A year or two ago, I spoke with Sugiura-san at the Ozawa Cup in Las Vegas, and he thanked us for our contribution to and support of the Tokaido line. (Assuming I understood his broken English correctly.)

If any of you have heard of the Tokaido Kaminari, Kumo, or Tsunami gi, I personally came up with those names. I spent hours pouring over Japanese/English dictionaries coming up with names I thought might work. I settled on a theme of weather or forces of nature. Kaminari means thunder or thunder and lightning, kumo means cloud, and tsunami refers to the big wave that Japan knows all too well. The Kumo and Tsunami are both brushed cotton, and I thought the cloud and the froth of a wave fit the softness of the material. The Kaminari is a harder, more traditional canvas, and I thought the image of thunder and lightning went with it nicely.

We created different names to differentiate them from the original Tokaido gi. They were different products designed with different materials and different cuts. They were meant to be lower cost options, primarily for non-Japanese markets. They were designed as alternatives to the original, not imitations.

Since then, many other models of Tokaido gi have popped up in various countries around the world. I haven't heard of anyone marketing a Tokaido gi that was not authorized by Tokaido. That doesn't mean they're not out there, but if they are, they must be pretty rare. If anyone has any knowledge of an actual fake Tokaido uniform, I'd welcome the new info.

I hope this helps clear things up.

[bushido_man96]

Thanks for this information, John.

[Patrick]

Thanks for sharing this.

Patrick