Genki grew up in Takayama, a mountain town in Gifu known for its wooden streets and for carpenters whose skills were once requisitioned by the imperial court. Craftsmen were not a cultural attraction there. They were neighbours.
He read Economics at Keio University, then spent around twenty years inside Japanese companies: JALUX, an aviation trading company, Recruit Agent, and Japan Motor Terminal, working in finance, sales, contracts, and operations. That is where he learned how business is actually conducted in Japan, which introductions carry weight, and how to make an agreement hold.
Wellnethy is now a registered travel agency licensed by the Governor of Tokyo, and Genki designs journeys for guests arriving from abroad. Travelling with them, he kept noticing the same thing: the makers whose work moved his guests most were often the ones with no way of being found.
So he began going to the workshops himself. He visits, watches the work, and talks with the maker before inviting anyone into the Takumi Masters Collective, and he spends his working weeks supporting Japanese artisans and small studios in their own language. That is why a request from Wellnethy reaches people who do not answer enquiries from strangers, and why what you receive from us is an introduction rather than a listing.
