Goldwin has expanded by pursuing aesthetics and performance through monozukuri (the art of making things), using rigorously selected materials. Building on this track record, we are now venturing into kotozukuri (creating values) and kankyozukuri (creating places and opportunities) to explore ways to enrich both humanity and nature. As our first kankyozukuri initiative, we are currently developing Play Earth Park Naturing Forest in Toyama Prefecture, Goldwin’s birthplace, with the aim of opening in early summer 2027. This two-part article series features Kazuya Nomura, Senior Managing Director, and Hiroshi Saito, Director and General Manager of the Business Division and General Manager of the Administration Department, PLAY EARTH PARK Inc., who share their thoughts, challenges, and breakthroughs in building this place from the ground up.
Part 1 focuses on their careers and values, delving into the heart of Play Earth Park Naturing Forest.
Experience and Discovery Leading to Concrete Action
Families climbing mountains together or fly fishing in a river. Children playing and learning in nature, joined by their families and neighbors… When Kazuya Nomura, Senior Managing Director of PLAY EARTH PARK Inc., saw this scene in the concept film for Play Earth Park Naturing Forest at the financial results briefing in May 2021, about five years ago, he felt an instant connection. “I saw myself in the parents and children in the footage,” he recalls.
“From a young age, I have taken my two sons along to do outdoor sports—mountain climbing, fly fishing, and more. The parents and children in the footage were doing exactly what I’d been doing. Over roughly 35 years of fly fishing, I have witnessed firsthand how the ecosystem has changed. Fly fishing in mountain streams and lakes is deeply connected to the life cycles of aquatic insects such as mayflies. You learn which insects appear where and when, then tie flies to mimic what the fish are feeding on at that spot. But if the water temperature changes or water quality deteriorates, the insects simply disappear. This kind of change in fish ecosystems is occurring in many places.
Even when climbing mountains, I notice it—the windows when we can enjoy autumn and spring scenery are getting shorter and shorter. With sweltering summers and winters bringing sudden heavy snowfall, it feels like the four seasons have been reduced to just two. Through these recreational experiences, I have directly sensed these environmental changes, and I find it alarming. I’ve always felt I had to do something. That is why Goldwin’s vision of kankyozukuri immediately resonated with me. I firmly believe that Play Earth Park Naturing Forest is a significant initiative and, frankly, I am proud of it.” (Nomura)
Meanwhile, Hiroshi Saito, Director and General Manager of the Business Division and General Manager of the Administration Department, PLAY EARTH PARK Inc., says that the Play Earth Park Naturing Forest project embodies the future he has always envisioned.
“In 2020, during Goldwin’s next-generation leadership development training, each participant had an opportunity to propose a new vision for the company. At that time, I pitched the concept of building a space where people could experience the values we uphold as a monozukuri company. That is why, when I heard about the concept of Play Earth Park Naturing Forest, it immediately clicked. I was thrilled that the company had decided to venture into this field.” (Saito)
PLAY EARTH PARK Inc., where Nomura and Saito work, was established in 2023 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Goldwin. Its purpose is to address priority challenges under the long-term vision PLAY EARTH 2030—namely, tackling climate change and restructuring the business to be sustainable—while promoting fulfilling and healthy lifestyles through sports. The company aims to create spaces where people can connect with nature and stimulate each other’s creativity in pursuit of these goals. The first step is to develop and operate Play Earth Park Naturing Forest.
The park will be a space where children experience new sensations and adults discover fresh insights. By creating such a place, “I hope that more people will start thinking about what they can do to improve the environment and take concrete action,” says Nomura.
From kototo the Forefront of Kankyozukuri
Nomura joined Goldwin in 1990 and began his career in sales. For over 30 years since then, he has worked on the front lines of the retail business, running self-operated stores and developing retail spaces in department stores within the outdoor business domain.
“When I joined the company, our core business was skiing. In the 1990s, when skiing was hugely popular, I worked at the Sendai Office for about seven years. Once, when I was setting up a THE NORTH FACE shop in the children’s apparel section of a department store, a representative from the store asked me, ‘Who is your competitor?’ I answered, ‘The gaming industry.’ Since then, I’ve always believed in taking children outside to play, rather than letting them sit at home playing video games.” (Nomura)
Indeed, he has actively engaged in kotozukuri on the sales floor—for example, by organizing numerous children’s mountain climbing events in collaboration with department stores.
“I myself grew up going mountain climbing and fishing with my parents. I’ve also had my children experience outdoor activities like skiing, mountain climbing, and fishing. Having lived it myself, the idea of passing down nature experiences from one generation to the next is something deeply rooted in who I am. I feel that this foundation has influenced my involvement in advancing the Play Earth Park Naturing Forest project.” (Nomura)
In contrast, Saito, who joined Goldwin in 2006, started his career in the Finance Department within the General Administration Headquarters.
“Since I had been playing soft tennis for 14 years starting in junior high school, I was hoping to join the athletic brand business unit. When I was assigned to the Finance Department, I felt completely out of place. Looking back, however, the six years I spent there have become the foundation of my current career. That experience really instilled in me a sense for numbers—a feeling like, ‘If these figures stay this way, the business might not survive,’ or ‘If we improve here, the entire business will improve.’” (Saito)
He then spent about seven years, from 2014 to 2021, working on the Speedo swimwear brand. The division imported and sold competitive racing swimsuits, goggles, and caps from the brand’s UK headquarters, while also planning, manufacturing, and selling apparel and swimwear in-house. Having experienced both the import distribution and manufacturing business models proved to be a significant asset for Saito.
“Half of me thinks like a distributor selling imported competitive racing swimsuits, while the other half thinks like a manufacturer who sets targets based on cost structures, then plans, manufactures, and sells products. I was able to experience both perspectives. Moreover, I took over as head of the Speedo Business Department at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was precisely because things were far from smooth sailing that I was able to keep pursuing improvement strategies head-on.” (Saito)
Saito has a track record of repositioning Speedo, which was primarily known as a swimwear brand, by expanding it into a broader lifestyle domain in and around water.
A Place to Redefine the Relationship Between Nature and People
We asked the two leaders at the forefront of the Play Earth Park Naturing Forest project about their vision for its future. Nomura began by emphasizing the importance of continuity.
“What matters most is staying the course for the long haul. To that end, we need to engage not only children, who are our primary audience, but also their parents and local residents, so that they come to understand the facility’s value and feel genuinely attached to it. Our journey does not end when the buildings and other physical structures are completed. We must constantly update them based on customer feedback and our own ideas. To ensure that the park remains viable for a long time, it is essential that all the intangible aspects—from activities and workshops to store operations, the food menu, and our staff—continue evolving.” (Nomura)
Beyond that, he also dreams of expanding the project nationwide.
“This is my personal vision, but if the project takes root in Toyama Prefecture, people from regions with different natural environments and cultures may express interest in joining our initiative. If that happens, we could build parks in coastal areas, near lakes, or in mountainous regions. As the field changes, the park looks different, too. By rolling out parks that highlight local characteristics, we could help revitalize the host communities.” (Nomura)
Meanwhile, Saito envisions the park as a place that redefines the relationship between nature and people.
“Personally, I hope we will reach a point where people naturally understand that humans are part of nature. Whether you live in a city or the countryside, nature enriches your life. When we center our thinking around children, I feel that both our relationship with nature and with one another could shift in a more neutral and positive direction.
As populations concentrate in cities, more and more people are leaving rural areas. In many cases, new facilities built to improve local convenience do not fit the local atmosphere, overshadowing the area’s unique nature and culture. Creating places where people can experience the nature, food, and culture that are integral to local life may help residents rediscover the beauty of their communities and inspire more people to want to live there. Through this project, I hope people will realize that living in the city is not the only answer—Tokyo has its strengths, and so does Toyama.” (Saito)
As Goldwin, a sports apparel manufacturer with 76 years of history, continues for another 100 or even 150 years, Saito is determined to bring Play Earth Park Naturing Forest to life so that the company can remain indispensable to the everyday lives of consumers.
“Some families visiting Play Earth Park Naturing Forest may learn about Goldwin for the first time. Some of the children may even dream of working for Goldwin someday. I believe the results of this project will bear fruit one by one as those children grow up. I want to make Goldwin’s commitment to kankyozukuri visible.” (Saito)
Nomura continues.
“I’d be happy if people took an interest in this project with a long-term vision in mind, thinking, ‘Let’s all rally behind the children who will shape the future of Japan and the world.’” (Nomura)
In Part 2, “Foundational Experience as the Starting Point for Children’s Futures: The Long-Term Vision of Play Earth Park Naturing Forest,” we will delve into Nomura and Saito’s challenges and breakthroughs in building Play Earth Park Naturing Forest from scratch, while focusing on specific programs such as moth workshops and the on-the-ground work of place-making.
Kazuya Nomura
Born in 1966. Joined Goldwin in 1990. After serving in the Sendai Office Ski Sales Department (1991), he moved to the Sales Group of the Goldwin Business Department, First Sales Division (2002), followed by the Sales Group of the Coleman Business Department (2004). He then served as Sales Leader for Osaka Department Stores in Sales Department 1, Outdoor Sales Division (2007), and as Sales Leader for Tokyo Department Stores (2009). He was appointed General Manager of Sales Department 1, Business Administration Division (2014). He subsequently served as Deputy General Manager of the Business Division and General Manager of the PLAY EARTH PARK Promotion Office (2021), and as Deputy General Manager of the Global Brand Business Division and Senior Managing Director of PLAY EARTH PARK (2024). He currently serves as Deputy General Manager of the Corporate Planning Headquarters and Senior Managing Director of PLAY EARTH PARK (since 2026).
On his days off, he enjoys fly fishing, a passion he has pursued for about 35 years, and goes mountain climbing with his wife. He played baseball in elementary school, junior high school, and college.
Hiroshi Saito
Born in 1983. Joined the company in 2006. After serving in the Finance Group, Finance Department, General Administration Headquarters, he moved to the Business Management Team, Business Management Office, Business Administration Division (2013), followed by the Business Team, Business Group, Speedo Business Department (2014). He was appointed Business Team Leader of the Business Group, Speedo Business Department, Business Division under the Business Administration Division (2019), and Manager of the Business Group, Speedo Business Department, Second Business Division (2020). He then served as General Manager of the Speedo Business Department, Business Division (2021), and General Manager of the PLAY EARTH Business Department, Business Division (2022). He currently serves as Director and General Manager of the Business Division and General Manager of the Administration Department at PLAY EARTH PARK (since 2024).
He has played soft tennis for about 14 years, from junior high school through his working years. He enjoys gardening and spends weekends tending to his houseplants and garden, savoring the changing scents of seasonal flowers and observing the insects they attract as small daily pleasures.
The information provided, job titles and affiliations are current as of the time of the interview.
This serial Project is intended to help shareholders and investors understand our management policies, plans, financial situation, etc., and is not intended to solicit investment.
