Episode 5: Tell me! Milestone "What you see from the train window" Par

This series is a project in which Hagiwara (who runs with him in #WednesdayBudouzakaRen) listens to the stories of two people who have created milestone items (founder Nishioka) and used them (mid-career hire Yoshida) and delves into them.

・How to live a long life

Nishioka (hereinafter N): Speaking of which, the other day while I was hiking in the mountains, we were talking about how to wash socks. I had always just thrown them in the washing machine with my clothes, but they were like, "What?!"

Hagiwara (hereinafter H): Eh? Do I have to wash it by hand?

N: Before putting it in the washing machine. That day, when I got home from the mountain, I filled a washbasin with hot water as instructed, washed it by hand, and then soaked it in Oxygen bleach for about 10 minutes. Then it was so clean. It was an eye-opener. Pitch black water came out in a big spurt.

H: Wow.

N: It's like my socks have come back to life. The mud that was stuck in the fibers has come out. I'm ashamed to say that I've never tried this before. Why don't you give it a try? It's not the same at all.

H: I've never done it before. I'll give it a try.

N: I think it will last a long time.

Yoshida (hereinafter Y): The mud gradually gets stuck and it becomes hard and squeaky. Of course, I've never done it myself.

N: I just realized the other day that if you wash it carefully, it will come back to life and live longer. I'd love for all of our listeners to try it out (laughs).

Y: It's not a podcast (laughs)

・Encounters lead to encounters

H: Now, let's get to the main topic. This time it's socks.

Y: That's right, I've never heard from Nishioka-san why he decided to make socks.

N: That's right. I don't think we've talked about it before. Milestone is not only active in Japan, but overseas as well, and we once sponsored a series called the "Asia Trail Master." There are races mainly in Asia, including Malaysia and Thailand, and in Japan it also includes the ITJ (Izu Trail Journey).

Y: The name "Trail Master" is the same as the headlamp.

N: That's right. The race director suggested that we support athletes who are doing well in Asia as ambassadors. He introduced us to Asuka Nakajima, the top female athlete, because Japanese athletes are currently at the top of the rankings for both men and women.

Y: Are you still an active athlete?

N: She came to our booth at the Trail Open Air Demo last month, holding her baby.

Y: Oh, I see. You're on vacation.

N: Going back to the original story, I met him when he came back to Japan for a short visit. He was supported by a sock manufacturer called "OLENO" and made great products, and he had asked me to connect him with milestone, so I asked him to introduce me to them.

Y: This is the first time I've heard of it.

N: I didn't say that (laughs). I immediately bought them online and tried on OLENO socks, and I thought they were great. Then I was introduced to Nomaru-san. And that's how it all started.

・"Length" problem

N: In order to create it, I went to OLENO with the designer K and they showed me what they could do. I started by figuring out how to create the data.

H: Socks are three-dimensional.

N: I studied other companies' products, and among the many factors to consider, such as the material, fit, round shape, five-finger style, and tabi style, the most important thing for me was the length. Overseas products are really good, but I feel like they might not be suitable for Japanese legs.

Y: It's the length, right? I totally understand. I started with the classic, super dry ones, then I went through a lot of different styles, even wearing ones from overseas, but I had a problem with the length. They were a little too long.

H: Yes, there is.

Y: Personally, I think it has the effect of emphasizing short legs, making them look even shorter.

N: It's fine for people with long legs, but I think it's quite difficult for Japanese people, including myself, unless you're really good at showing them off.

H: So you have to be a fashion expert.

N: So the answer I came up with was 10 centimeters from the ankle.

Y: It's not OLENO's length, it's an original length from milesotne.

N: I did give instructions on that. The first release, MSS-001, is a mix of gray and salmon pink, and khaki and mustard. I think it's an excellent color combination. There aren't many socks with designs like that.

Y: Hagi, did you even notice? At first I thought it was camouflage, but when I looked closely it was actually a mountain.

H: I had a feeling that was the case (laughs).

N: Oh, has anyone not noticed? This one has a mountain motif, and the packaging shows a view of the mountains from a train window. Ash gray is snow-capped mountains. Forest green is the green of forests.