@OKUYAMATO NARA 奥大和 奈良

Only Yoshino cedar can be shaved down to the very last possible inch.
The more you use it, the more you will enjoy how the face of the wood changes.

ーーIs Applejack a family-run workshop?

Kobayashi: The company is a family affair that includes my father, who ran a workshop, my brother, a former pastry chef, and myself, a former police officer, as the main members, my mother, who makes and sells kakinoha sushi, and my brother, a cook who has recently returned to his hometown. It is strange that we all had different dreams, but now we are all involved in woodworking.

ーーWhat do you make at Applejack?

Kobayashi: We make wooden utensils, mainly all tableware related to food. The bowls, plates, and cups on my dining table are all made of wood, and I also drink my coffee in a wooden cup at work. All of the items that are generally made of ceramic are made of wood.

The features are simple, lightweight, and free of unnecessary design. My father worked for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force when he was young, and he said that the importance of aircraft is how light they are without unnecessary things.

We also want our products to be easy to use, simple, lightweight, and easy to use even for the elderly, because we want people to be able to hold them in their hands and use them every day. We were able to make it this lightweight because we used Yoshino cedar, which is strong enough to withstand even the most extreme cutting.

I think they are more expensive than ordinary tableware, but I would really like you to use them in your daily life instead of putting them away for safekeeping. If they are washed and dried normally, they can be used forever, and it is also nice to see the taste and the face of the wood change as it is used.

Because I want my father and brother to enjoy making things until they die
I will support places other than manufacturing.

ーーMr. Kobayashi, did you leave Kawakami Village once and then come back and join the workshop?

Kobayashi: I worked as a police officer in Nara Prefecture from the age of 18 until the end of March 2024. I had to leave the village and live alone because of many transfers, but I always thought that my starting point would always be in Kawakami Village, which I love. I realized after I retired that I had spent 15 years there, that even though I encountered many things as a police officer and saw things I didn’t like, when I came back here, I would reset and work hard again.

There is a sense of mystery in Kawakami Village, as if something invisible is protecting it. There are so few people that you don’t see anyone until you return home after going for a run, but there is something that has remained unchanged since the olden days.

ーーDid your brother also leave the village once and come back?

Kobayashi: My brother originally loved making pastries, so he got a job as a patissier. But after a while, he asked my parents if he could go back, and from then on he watched my father work, went to various places for training, and went on a journey of self-discovery.

Eventually, I came back to my home, and at first under the trade name Lumberjack, I made things that were different from my father’s, really simple or “what’s this?” I was making one-of-a-kind figurines and vases that were really simple or “what is this? But when I came back, we had a family meeting and I told my brother that I wanted to run the studio with everyone facing the same direction, and he began to focus on making the same things as my father.

ーーIn what capacity do you support Applejack?

Kobayashi: I sincerely hope that my father and brother will enjoy manufacturing until they die anyway. If there are artisans who join our company, I am committed to providing an environment where everyone, including them, can enjoy manufacturing.

My father and brother specialize in manufacturing, so even if they are approached to participate in a new event, they don’t make a move. But I am willing to try if there is a chance, and I believe that my father and brother are the ones who create 1 from 0, and it is my job to go beyond that and turn that 1 into 2 or 3.

I want to create a gallery to display the works of my father, whom I respect, and a café where the family can showcase their special skills.

ーーDo you ever hear from people who actually use your products?

Kobayashi: Yes, it happens often. After being interviewed for a TV program, for example, my father would receive a phone call on his cell phone with an order. One time, a person from outside of the prefecture called me and said, “My parents are getting old and their grip is getting weaker, so they can no longer hold and eat from a ceramic rice bowl. I would like to give them a wooden rice bowl as a gift, but I can’t find one anywhere.

My father has a very loving nature, so he would sometimes spend time making a special piece for that person. And here is another amazing thing about my father. Whenever he sends the finished product, he always sends it with a stroke of a pen in his masterly handwriting. I did so, as I always do, and received a happy reply, “My parents are eating with their own bowls.

I really respected my father because I had seen such joyful letters from customers since I was a police officer. Besides, my father never turns down a request from a customer, no matter how jam-packed his work schedule is. There are many people who are attracted by my father’s personality, so even if I take over the workshop, I definitely want to carry on my father’s attitude.

ーーWhat are your dreams for the future?

Kobayashi: The first dream I had when I left the police force was to create a gallery for my father. Even in this rural area, people come to seek healing and to see our products, so I would like to provide a café space where they can sit down and rest for a while.

My brother, a former pastry chef, also shared his dream of serving his own pastries in a café on a bowl they made. It would be nice if they could also try the Kakinoha Sushi that my mother makes. My other brother is a chef, so I would like to make this a place where each family member can showcase his or her specialties, for example by offering a Japanese cooking course once a month by reservation only.