Day in the Life of a Japanese Knife Maker

A day in the life of a Japanese Knife maker working in knife factory in Seki City Japan. This is what a typical work day would be for a knife technician in the factory and outside of workplace. The Japanese work culture can be seen in her everyday activities. Also, this is how Japanese knives are made. Nene works as a knife technician at Zwilling J.A. Henckels Japan, originally a 291-year-old German Knife maker who eventually setup an office in Japan and later acquired their knife factory here in Seki city, also known in Japan as the city of blades, crafting flawless samurai swords and knives for more than 800 years and producing half of Japan’s total knives in this city alone. Today, 90% of the company’s knives sold in Japan are actually made here at this factory. Throughout her shift, she’s tasked with inspecting knives being crafted that day, to ensure that each knife meets the factory’s strict quality standards. Which also means that she’s responsible for knowing the details about each and every knife that’s crafted in the factory including the entire build process for that individual knife and the technical requirements each one must satisfy in order for her to fully perform the inspections. In fact, all the workers are required to undergo basic training when joining, and during the training period, each worker’s skills are assessed and based on their strengths, assigned a specific role such as sharpening knifes, welding, etc. Apparently, sharpening the knives by hand is one of the most challenging parts when crafting a knife. So much so, the factory itself only has 9 specialists who have mastered the skill, and at the moment only 2 who are skilled enough to perform Kiwami Honbazuke, the most extreme and technical knife sharpening possible.

Zwilling J.A. Henckels Japan

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I'm from TOKYO JAPAN, I've been living here for a long time. I'll be your Tokyo Travel Guide, taking you to the spots I love as well as showing you what to do all around Japan and maybe sometimes overseas. I'm also into Tech so you'll see a few videos about my drone and other cool toys I discover. In short, the channel is all about what I Love, Japan, Food, Travel, Tech and most likely coming FROM-TOKYO, my home.

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[sophiaisabelle]

Japan Day in the Life videos are highly informative yet very entertaining to watch. I have this sort of weird fascination for Japanese knife crafting. They’re very, very high quality compared to just an ordinary kitchen knife. Whenever you need to either slice or chop something, you don’t need to exert much effort. Let the knife do what it can do.

[emilia]

As a bartender I'd LOVE to see some day (or rather night) in the life of Japanese bar staff, or what traditional pubs look like in Japan!!! Thanks Paolo

[MS-hxye]

The manager looked so excited to introduce himself, his role in the company, and his favorite blade. Very endearing! Everyone seems to be very proud of their work and there is definitely a lot that goes into making such quality products. Thank you for the insight to this factory, Paolo!

[salmanalfaruq]

It's crazy how a massive knife production feel modern yet traditional in at the same time. Pure awesomeness.

[rtrra]

This is like PBS Kids for adults how it's shot, warm, inviting, also informative. Also, her aptitude for all those forms of testing for knife quality is impressive.

[woreoutdrummer]

I bought some of these knives almost 11 years ago and today, to look at them, you would think they are only a week old. The quality is second to none...and now I know why. A big thank you to you, Nene and all your co-workers! And, of course, thank you Paolo for another great DITL video!

[Jobieable]

My mind was blown when you asked a R&D Developer to see an actual prototype and he was like hold up I will get one of the concepts out. Love how proud all of the people in the video are for working at their workplace, They all look dedicated to the work.

[ebbie]

Having a large living space in a quiet, beautiful area, short drive to work, being active with walking, meeting with numerous people a day, learning and memorizing knife patterns and sharpness... yeah this seems like the best career so far!!!! So cool! I think seeing a bartender would be cool as well

[aitoriri]

My father loves to cook, he made almost all the meals I ate since I was born to this day. He past this passion for coocking to me and now i enjoy coocking for my friends, my family and myselve. A year ago I got my first actuall job and be able to leave the nest with my own money. But I saved some money to gift each of my parets something special, I decided to bought my father a japanesse knife. Never have seen him soo happy looking at his boy starting life on his own (and gifting him a kickass knife). The knife is a Miyabi gyuto and i recogniced the logo on the thumbnail instantly, I didn´t see the video yet because i want to watch it with him.

Just wanted to share this with you guys, have a nice day.

[ar]

Never have I seen factory workers this dedicated and taking so much pride in their work, quite amazing.

[vycma]

Compared to other day in lives, she’s living quite comfortably

[smollmighto]

The proud the people working at the company is something you can feel through the video

[makz]

I'm a professional chef and I use Miyabi knives at work and at home. I love the quality. Now I have seen the passion and care put into crafting the knives I can tell it is definitely sets them apart from other knives.

[SwiIFTIRoIN]

As a German I've known Zwilling for a long time now and was a bit surprised, that they actually manufacture in Japan, but it makes totally sense.
Took a look on their homepage, and it turns out you can even send in your old Zwilling knifes for 7€ (in Germany) and get them sharpen them for you. That's really cheap, if you ask me.
Like their homepage says: "Find out, why Japanese craftsmanship and German precision are the perfect combination" (translated from German to English).
Maybe one of my next knifes will be one of them as well :D

[Decimation]

Very impressive. Much respect to her. I'll have to look into getting a set of knives of that brand. The quality checks are insane.

[Devtox]

Heyyy I just realized halfway through the video that I have a Miyabi knife! I bought one in highschool 13 years ago and it's my favorite knife. I treasure it so much that I don't let my husband use it 😂
It's so cool to see where it came from! Makes me proud too that so much care was put into it. Thanks for this video!

[vinamramathur]

I am amazed that you have been able to convince these companies to let you have this level of access and openness, especially for YouTube. Big shot out to you and your efforts. Plus it is amazing to see a young woman taking the lead and being given recognition. Please keep doing these. I am a huge supporter.

[gameguys]

I feel like every new video, Paolo's dad jokes get better and better haha. This is such a great series.

[wayneday]

She's such a beautiful young lady and so dedicated to her work her family should be very proud of her.

[acefresh]

Just bought a Miyabi Kaizen II chef's knife this afternoon and came across this on my recommended! Even prouder to own it now I've seen how much craftmanship and passion goes into each knife. Thank you Nene and team!