A Venerable Family Business Built on Tea and Paper

Ejima is housed in a striking historical building located right in the heart of Odawara.

Ceramic containers of green tea with the “Ejima-en” label.

Ejima Ken, the seventeenth owner of the Ejima business, stands in front of the area displaying objects from the merchant family’s 350-year history.

Ledger books and other rare, well-preserved historical materials are on display at the Ejima store.

Some of the main types of Japanese tea sold at Ejima. The Ejima-en brand brings together well-known local varieties.

Near the scales used to weigh the tea that is sold, are wooden boxes for storing tea, featuring the katakana character エ, pronounced e, that has long served as the symbol mark for the store.

Ejima Sumiko, who is in charge of Japanese paper sales, says that the paper sold at Ejima is characterized by a light texture and use of color, and a handcrafted feel.”