Tamiya - a word usually associated with model cars, whether they're remote-controlled (RC) or for display. This word association is thanks to the efforts of the Tamiya company, a Japan-based country that specializes in creating detailed model and RC cars.
However, they were not always this successful, and they did not start as a model-manufacturing company from the get-go.
From Lumber Company to RC Carmaker
According to the Tamiya Company's About page, it started as a lumber company in 1946, in the Japanese town of Oshika in Shizuoka City under the name Tamiya Shoji & Co. Its founder, Tamiya Yoshio, was 41 at the time of the company's founding.
As time went on, the lumber company founded a wooden model section, which became profitable enough for the company to rebrand itself as a wooden model manufacturer with the goal of being "First in Quality Around the World." However, it soon used plastic kits for its models come 1960.
The new Tamiya Corporation's first plastic model was a 1/800 scale of the Japanese battleship Yamato, the Japanese Navy's flagship during the Second World War.
By 1968, the company, which was known as Tamiya Plastic Kogyo Co., was invited to participate in the Nuremberg Toy Fair in Germany for the first time. The company used this opportunity to showcase their 1/12 scale racing car models, which drew the attention of visitors and guests.
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In August 1969, the company renamed itself again, choosing to be known as Tamiya Plastic Model Co.
The newly-named company would then finish the construction of a new headquarters in Oshika, Shizuoka City, in 1973, where it would remain to this day. It eventually renamed itself as Tamiya Plastic Co. in 1978.
The company would continue to create highly detailed models of motorbikes, ships, military vehicles, lorries, aircraft, and especially cars, per Auto Express.
Its best-known RC car, a 1/12 scale Porsche 934 Turbo, first appeared in 1976. However, the company's inclusion of RC models was almost by chance. According to an AutoCar article, Tamiya Shunsaku, the son of Tamiya Yoshio and future head of the company back then, noticed one of his designers, Taki Fumito, driving an RC car around. Shunsaku then fitted a battery-electric drive to a Tamiya F1 car kit and was pleased with the result.
The company's first RC model was a Sherman tank, which was produced in 1974.
Modern-day Tamiya and Where to Buy its Products
LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 15: Ant Pritchard from Hertfordshire adjusts his model truck after a world record attempt by members of Tamiya Trucking Group to get into the history books with the longest moving convoy of radio controlled vehicles at Alexandra Palace on January 15, 2015 in London, England. The record attempt was ahead of the opening of the 2015 London Model Engineering Exhibition which will run from Friday 16th January to Sunday 18th January 2015.
The company remains strong to this day, still creating RC models of surprising detail. It even made models of Formula 1 cars, such as the F1 Honda RA273, the Lotus 49, and the Lotus 72. David Binger, of the U.K.'s Richard Kohnstamm Ltd, mentioned that Tamiya's model of the Lotus 72 was a huge seller in the U.K., which became the cornerstone of its popularity in the country.
The company initially sold its products exclusively in Japan. However, its popularity allowed them to branch out to different countries. It now has headquarters in the U.S., Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Europe.
Tamiya models can be purchased through its U.S. website, Walmart, and Amazon. You can also buy the parts you need to assemble build-it-yourself models from these online stores.
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