The Noritake of today was originally established in 1876 in New York by the Morimura brothers.   Ichizaemon Morimura exported china from Japan to his brother, Toyo, who was living in New York at the time.  After around 5 or 6 years, Toyo recognised that the fastest growing industry was ceramics with a growing demand for Japanese ceramic wares. 

In 1904 the company was restructured and moved to a brand new factory on the outskirts of a small village called Noritake. 

Following a large success in America the company started exporting to Europe.  The Komaru mark was registered in London in 1908. 

Today Noritake is still a brand leader in tableware and the early pieces highly sought after by collectors worldwide.