COMPANY

GREETING
FROM THE PRESIDENT

First, allow me to express my heartfelt gratitude for your loyal patronage.
In 1902, during the dawn of Western food culture in Japan, a small food wholesaler known as Misawaya Shoten—the predecessor of Bull-Dog Sauce Co., Ltd.—opened in the Nihonbashi ward of Tokyo (currently part of the Chuo Ward).
Misawaya Shoten began producing sauces in 1905, but suffered damage from the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. Bull-Dog Sauce Food Products Co., Ltd. was established in 1926 in the wake of that disaster, and would overcome many trials and tribulations in the years to come. Six years prior to the establishment of Misawaya Shoten, in 1896, Yamashiroya—the predecessor of Ikari Sauce, located in the Awaza neighborhood of Osaka—became the first Japanese company to sell Worcester sauce. These two companies continuously developed, and overcame many obstacles during the reigns of four Japanese emperors. Now, with these two companies as the main constituents of the Bull-Dog Sauce Group, we intend to continue striving to further expand our market.
Our management philosophy is to provide our customers with products that fill them with happiness. Our mission is to help our customers and their families live every day in good health. Everyone in the Bull-Dog Sauce Group works together to achieve this mission and embody our slogan—The Partner of Happy Dining—so that we can deliver value to each and every customer. We appreciate your continued patronage.

Bull-Dog Sauce Co., Ltd.
Ikari Sauce Co., Ltd.
President / Representative Director

Hisatoshi Ishigaki

COMPANY PROFILE

COMPANY NAME: BULL-DOG SAUCE CO., LTD.

FOUNDING: Opened as the food wholesaler shop MISAWAYA in 1902
(Manufacturing and selling of Bull-dog Sauce starts)

ESTABLISHED: 1926.9.21

BUSINESS: Manufacturing and selling of Brown Sauce and other seasonings

CAPITAL: 1,044,378　thousand yen 【as of March End 2020】

NO.OF EMPLOYEE: 220 people【as of March End 2020】

SALES AMOUNT: 11,716 million yen 【Fiscal year 2020】

History

1902

Nakasaburo Kojima established Misawaya Shoten—the predecessor to Bull-Dog Sauce
—in Nihonbashi. It is said that the shop derives its name from the Kojima’s birthplace, the village of Misawa in what was then the Ina district of Nagano Prefecture.

Bull-Dog Sauce Founder Nakasaburo Kojima

1905

A factory was built in Nihonbashi to manufacture Bull-Dog Sauce in-house as a private-label product : “Dog Logo Sauce.” At the time, the sauce was packaged in clay jars and barrels, not bottles.

1909

Registered the Bull-Dog trademark.
Marketed as “No. 1 Special Bull-Dog Sauce.”

1923

The fires in the aftermath of the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 incinerated all storefronts of Misawaya Shoten in Nihonbashi Sakamoto-cho (known as Kayabachokado), and the Misawaya factory in Hatchobori (Kyobashi Ward). Production resumed the following year.Three years after the disaster, the production system recovered to roughly pre-disaster levels.

Image of the Hatchobori Factory at that time

1926

Established Bull-Dog Sauce Food Products Co., Ltd.
Through the mid-1950s, the company made brewed vinegar, ketchup, pepper, mustard and curry powder in addition to sauces.

Label at that time(left)　Curry powder label(right)

1929

Completed the new Bull-Dog Sauce building at present-day Kayabacho Crossing. Bull-Dog Sauce Food Products and Misawaya Shoten shared the building.

New company building at Kayabacho Crossing

1935

Bull-Dog Sauce
Established new factory in Hatogaya, Saitama Prefecture.

1951

Bull-Dog Sauce Released Tonkatsu sauce.

1969

Released the 300-mL Bull Pack — the same square plastic bottle container used today. The container was made out of disposable plastic material, which brought major changes to the distribution system.

1973

Bull-Dog Sauce
Listed in the Second Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange

1976

Bull-Dog Sauce
Constructed new headquarters building in current location.

1998

Bull-Dog Sauce
Established Tatebayashi Factory in Gunma Prefecture, where it introduced the latest technology at the time, including automatic weighing and automatic washing equipment.
The Tatebayashi Factory joined the Hatogaya Factory to create a two-factory system.

2005

Ikari Sauce joined the Bull-Dog Sauce Group.

2009

Bull-Dog Sauce
Established a Chinese subsidiary, Bull-Dog Trading Co., Ltd., in Beijing.

2010

Bull-Dog Sauce
Won first prize at the 2010 Monde Selection.

2012

Bull-Dog Sauce Released “Uma sauce.”

2015

Bull-Dog Sauce
Acquired FSSC 22000 certification for the Hatogaya Factory and Tatebayashi Factory.

OUR FOUNDER’S AMBITION

To create delicious sauces that bring happiness to the dining table

Bull-Dog Sauce’s history of exploring ways to provide products that fill people with happiness begins in 1902 with the establishment of the food wholesaler Misawaya Shoten.
Our drive to create delicious sauces that define the taste of Japanese-style Western cuisine, and therefore deliver happiness, has persisted through tumultuous times, including the aftermath of the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and World War II, and the explosion and tapering off of Japanese economic growth in the 20th century.

OUR GROUP’S AMBITIONS

Management Philosophy

Provide products that fill people with joy

1.: Define happiness as “everyone living in good health.”

2.: Be a safe, secure, and trustworthy company that puts quality first.

3.: Be a company that creates new value, and provides dependable flavors and joy like no other.

AMBITIONS FOR OUR SAUCES

Deliver new flavors that are safer, more secure,
and more dependable than any other

We cherish the flavors and textures of our ingredients in order to fully draw out the power and flavors of nature. Thus, we spare no effort in our pursuit of the best natural ingredients and recipes, and use the bounty of nature to the fullest in an effort to fulfill our greatest desire—for Bull-Dog and Ikari sauces to bring delicious flavors to dining tables throughout Japan.

ORIGIN OF THE BULL-DOG SAUCE NAME

Bulldogs are lovable, symbolic figures in England, the birthplace of Worcester sauce.
To encourage the same kind of love and emphasize the origin of the sauces, we adopted the product name “Bull-Dog” and the corresponding logo when Worcester sauce was gaining popularity in Japanese households in the early to mid-1920s.

GREETING FROM THE PRESIDENT