Speaking of Watada Printing (和多田印刷; see last post), it’s obligatory to bring up this Kyoto business lore:
Watada began printing Nintendo playing cards since 1902. When Nintendo was heavily in debt and unable to pay, Watada made the difficult decision (being a small business themselves) to allow them to extend. When Nintendo eventually hit it big with Famicom, instead of contracting a larger printer to handle their high-volume needs, they continued entrusting works to Wadata. Due to the patronage, Wadata grew to be the largest printing company in Kyoto with many well-known clients.
The relationship between Nintendo and Watada Printing is as ride-or-die as it gets. It’s evident from the fact that Labo, the most extensive printing project since Nintendo’s early days, had no leaks whatsoever before its announcement.
[Originally posted on 2025-06-30 Pacific Time]
