To the interested reader,
I moved from Sydney to Tokyo in 2016 to immerse myself in a culture where craftsmanship is highly valued, and creativity is abundant. After enjoying a few years of appreciating Japanese design, I decided to also look at design back home in Australia.
What I found is that Australia is also home to many talented designers and artisans – this fact is unknown to many in Japan. I decided that Australian talent deserves more exposure overseas. I wanted to create a cultural bridge between Japan and Australia – through the sharing of design stories from Australian designers (and eventually stories from Japanese designers too).
JAU's goal is to showcase the best of Australian design and culture. We hope to bring you closer to the spirit of Australian designers by sharing their story, inspirations, and design processes.
Beyond sharing stories, doing right by the environment is a major motivation of ours.
We're living in a throwaway culture; the environment pays the price – we must value what we have. If people understand how much work and effort goes into producing an object, then they are less likely to throw it out.
I firmly believe in owning things that have a timeless aesthetic. Timeless objects don't go out of fashion, they remain beautiful, no matter the trend of the current day. There is no need to replace something that never dates – it's always beautiful.
As part of our commitment to the environment, we donate 1% of revenue to "1% For The Planet", an organisation that assists in positive environmental action around the world.
Please join us on our journey as we bring you beautiful design and learn about the people behind these creations. If I can personally help you with anything, you may contact me directly (sonny@jau.co.jp), or send my team an email hi@jau.co.jp.
Regards,
Sonny Mai (Founder and Managing Director)