Our trip to Japan - visiting the roots of milestone81

In April 2025, we (Kylian & Thijs) travelled to Japan. Not just for the mountains and food (although there was plenty of that), but to visit the birthplace of milestone81. It was a mix of business, trail running, friendship and a big dose of inspiration.

From Fujitoki to milestone81

We started in Osaka, where the story of milestone81 really begins. Shuhei Nishioka, the founder, comes from a family that’s been making lamps since 1920. His family's company, Fujitoki, originally made carbide lamps for miners — strong, simple tools that did exactly what they were built for.

That mindset is still alive in everything Shuhei and his team makes. Visiting the office in Osaka and hearing the full story made us realise once again that milestone81 isn't just another big corporate gear brand. It’s a continuation of a long Japanese tradition of thoughtful, durable design.

The milestone81 office and store in located in Teradacho — a quiet neighbourhood in Osaka. The store is compact, clean, and full of meaning. We were impressed by how the office was designed and built. The same simplicity of the assortment can be found back in the way the showroom is built, which is amazing.

Visiting the Mt. FUJI 100

From Osaka, we traveled to the Mt. FUJI 100 — a legendary trail race that loops around the base of Japan’s most iconic mountain. We weren’t racing ourselves, but we were there to support the milestone81 Japan team.

The course is impressive: 100 miles (160+ km) of forest roads, ridgelines, and volcanic soil. It was a great experience to visit a non-European trail race and especially this event in Japan. We watched the start and the atmosphere was very calm compared to European races. One of the coolest things was that there were milestone81 headlamps everywhere, something we would love to see in Europe in the future as well!

Why “81”?

If you’ve ever wondered why we're called milestone81 — the “81” comes from Japan’s international dialing code. A small tribute to where the brand was born, and a reminder to the craftmanship and heritage of the brand.

Visiting specialty stores

One of the things that made a big impression on us was visiting so many trail running and outdoor specialty stores across Japan. From tiny local shops to larger chains, we tried to talk to as many people on the floor as possible.

These conversations gave us a lot of insights into what matters to (trail)runners and hikers. How the milestone81 products are displayed. What stories and stick. How Japanese customers connect with the values behind a product.

We came back with a notebook full of ideas for how to position and communicate milestone81 the best way in Europe — and how to stay close to the same quiet confidence that defines the brand in Japan.

What we brought home

If I need to explain the purpose of our trip in one word, I would say 'connection'. With the roots of milestone81 and the team. With the Japanese trail running community. With each other. With Japan.

We came back full of inspiration, more grounded, and more motivated to keep building the milestone81 brand in Europe — trail by trail. Why? Because we believe in the story, brand and message.

To the milestone81 team, to all the runners we met and everyone else that made our trip so special: arigato.

- Thijs