Bunnosuke Syokuhin (文の助食品株式会社) is a Japanese food company registered in Kyoto’s Yamashina ward, at Kawata Onode-cho 13-2.[1] The company name translates to “Bunnosuke Food,” and it operates in the same location as the Yamashina factory of Kabushiki Kaisha Bunnosuke Chaya (株式会社文の助茶屋), a Kyoto confectionery maker whose business includes the manufacture and sale of Japanese sweets.[2][3]
Design and History
The Bunnosuke Syokuhin symbol was originally designed by Hiroyuki Okuda in 1978.[4] The mark is described as a square, rounded logo that makes use of negative space and ring-like forms.[4]
The parent brand, Bunnosuke Chaya, traces its origins to the rakugo storyteller Katsura Bunnosuke II, who opened an amazake (sweet sake) tea house in Kyoto in 1910.[2] The company was formally established on November 1, 1971.[2] The Yamashina factory, located at the same address as Bunnosuke Syokuhin, produces items such as warabi mochi, amazake, shiratama and azuki bean products.[5]
Meaning and Symbolism
Documented symbolism for the Bunnosuke Syokuhin mark itself is limited. However, the related Bunnosuke Chaya brand uses an otafuku (a traditional Japanese mask of a round-faced woman) as its shop sign and logo mark. A company press release notes that a product was shaped like the otafuku form that mirrors the shop’s logo mark.[6] A separate trademark filing for “文の設計圖” (Bun no design), registered to Bunnosuke Chaya Co., Ltd., describes a monochrome, two-dimensional mark featuring the Japanese character “文.”[7]
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