Orient Industry - History 1977 - 1982

<Translated from original Japanese article here> 

Hohoemi

In the 1970's Hideo Tsuchiya was working in an adult goods store where a lot of customers would complain about defective blow-up sex dolls. The dolls were nothing more than poorly made inner tubes that would often leak or collapse during use. Hideo recognized the needs among his customers for a well made love doll and established Orient Industry in 1975.

After two years of trial and error, Orient Industry released its first product in 1977, a love doll called "Hohoemi" or "Smile". The "Smile" love doll utilizes soft-plastic for the face, breasts and polyurethane polymers to reinforce the torso area. The doll sold for 38,000 Yen or roughly $380, but back in the 70's that was quite pricey for a sex toy. However, the Smile love doll still utilizes blow-up components for the arms and legs and still had troubles with air leaks.

In 1982, Orient Industry released its first non-inflatable love doll. The "Omokage" or "Facial Memories" was released in 1982 as the first fully polymer based love doll with a latex skin layer. The doll has no inflatable parts and was therefore able to withstand more weight without any concerns of leaks. The latex surface also provided a skin texture that felt much closer to the real thing. The Omokage also had detachable limbs for easy storage.

Back in 1982 a love doll like the Omokage was unprecedented and priced at premium 158,000 yen or roughly $1,580. Despite the high price, the Omokage sold very well and established Tsuchiya's company as the leader in the industry. This latex based love doll would become the standard for premium love dolls and the main product for Orient Industry.