Figures are drawn from LION’s corporate information and FY2025 reporting.1

LION traces its origins to 1891, when entrepreneur Tomijiro Kobayashi founded T. Kobayashi & Co. in Kanda, Tokyo, trading in soap and raw materials for matches.1

The company’s early growth was closely linked to hygiene and oral care. It began selling beauty and laundry soaps in 1893, and introduced Lion Toothpowder in 1896; this toothpowder business later became one of the foundations of the modern LION Corporation.1

A significant milestone occurred in 1911 with the launch of Lion Dental Cream, described by the company as Japan’s first toothpaste packaged in a tube. Two years later, it introduced Lion Kodomo Toothpaste, targeted at children.1

From toothpaste to a diversified consumer-goods company

During the first half of the 20th century, LION expanded beyond oral care into soaps, laundry products and household cleaning. In 1919, the soap division became Lion Soap Co., Ltd., while the toothpaste business developed separately as Lion Dentifrice. These two entities eventually formed the core of today’s LION Corporation.1

Notable historical products include:

• Lion Toothpowder — introduced in 1896
• Lion Dental Cream — 1911
• Lion Kodomo Toothpaste — 1913
• Lion Laundry Soap — 1920
• Lipon F — 1956, a kitchen detergent for fruits, vegetables and tableware
• Dash — 1967, a laundry detergent using alpha-olefin sulfonate
• TOP — introduced in 1979
• Clinica Lion — introduced in 1981
• KireiKirei — introduced in 1997
• TOP NANOX — introduced in 2010
• NANOX one — introduced in 20231

A major corporate milestone occurred in 1980, when Lion Dentifrice Co., Ltd. and Lion Fat and Oil Co., Ltd. merged to create LION Corporation.1 This merger unified the company’s key fields—oral care, detergents, household products and personal care—under a single corporate organisation.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, LION diversified its portfolio to include oral hygiene, laundry, dishwashing, hair care, body care, deodorants, household cleaning and pharmaceuticals, while also expanding internationally across Asia.1

Although fundamentally a Japanese company, LION maintains a significant presence across Asia. One of its earliest overseas ventures was Lion Dentifrice (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., established in 1960, followed by expansion into other Asian markets.1

Today, the group operates businesses, subsidiaries and joint ventures in countries including Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, China, Bangladesh and other Asian markets. Its international strategy has historically emphasised adapting products to local consumer needs rather than simply exporting Japanese formulations.1

LION in Thailand

For consumers in Southeast Asia, LION Corporation (Thailand) Limited is a particularly significant entity. Established in 1967 as The Lion Fat and Oil (Thailand) Company Limited through a joint venture between Sahapattana Piboon Co., Ltd. and The Lion Fat and Oil Co., Ltd. of Japan, it was later renamed LION Corporation (Thailand) Limited.2

The Thai company has operated for more than five decades, engaging in manufacturing, consumer products, corporate social responsibility and environmental initiatives, making Thailand one of LION’s historically important overseas markets.2

LION’s current operations are broadly divided into consumer products, industrial products and overseas business. According to its FY2025 company profile, consolidated sales were approximately ¥422 billion, with the following segment mix:1

• Consumer Products — 53%
• Industrial Products — 9%
• Overseas — 38%

Consumer products

The consumer-products business encompasses several categories:1

Oral Healthcare
* Toothpaste
* Toothbrushes
* Mouthwash
* Other oral-care products

Beauty Care
* Body soap
* Hair-care products
* Deodorants
* Personal-care products

Fabric Care
* Laundry detergents
* Fabric-care products
* Products for specialised laundry needs

Living Care
* Dishwashing products
* Household cleaning products
* Other products for everyday household use

Pharmaceuticals
* Over-the-counter medicines
* Eye-care products
* Other health-related products

In FY2025, the consumer-products sales mix was approximately 32% oral healthcare, 11% beauty care, 25% fabric care, 9% living care and 11% pharmaceuticals, with other products accounting for the remainder.1

LION owns or operates an extensive portfolio of brands, which varies by country due to localisation. Well-known brands and product families include:1

Oral care

• Clinica — A major oral-care brand associated with toothpaste, toothbrushes and preventive dental care.
• Systema — An oral-care range focused on toothbrushes and products for gum and periodontal care.
• NONIO — A brand centred on breath care and daily oral hygiene.
• Kodomo — A children’s oral-care brand with roots in LION’s early children’s toothpaste products.
• OCH-TUNE — A newer oral-care concept introduced in 2024, offering toothpaste, toothbrushes and mouthwash organised around personal styles such as “FAST” and “SLOW”.1

Laundry and fabric care

• NANOX — One of LION’s best-known laundry detergent families, particularly associated with highly concentrated liquid detergents.
• TOP — A historic laundry-detergent brand dating back to 1979.
• Acron — A laundry detergent range designed for delicate clothing; an updated line was launched in 2026.1

Household cleaning

• CHARMY — A major dishwashing detergent family.
• Magica — A dishwashing product line emphasising grease removal and cleaning performance.
• LOOK — A household-cleaning brand covering bathroom and toilet cleaners.

Personal care

• KireiKirei — A well-known hand-washing and hygiene brand, introduced in 1997 with medicated hand soap.1
• Ban — A deodorant and antiperspirant brand marketed for decades.
• hadakara — A body-soap brand featuring moisturising technology.

Healthcare

LION has also developed and marketed pharmaceutical and health-related products. One of the company’s best-known historical examples is BUFFERIN, launched in Japan in 1963.1

Research and development is central to LION’s positioning as a company that seeks to change everyday behaviour through science and product design, rather than merely manufacturing household goods. The company conducts consumer research and develops technologies in areas including oral health, surfactants and detergency, skin care, hygiene, pharmaceuticals, household cleaning and environmental performance.1

LION’s R&D philosophy combines consumer insights with fundamental technological research and core competencies. Historically, the company has often positioned products around shifts in consumer habits; its oral-care business, for example, has been linked to dental education and preventive dentistry since the early 20th century.1

Oral healthcare is not simply one product category among many for LION; it forms part of the company’s historical identity. Beginning with soap and toothpowder, LION’s history includes numerous initiatives to promote better dental hygiene, such as:1

• Children’s toothpaste introduced in 1913
• A children’s dental clinic established in 1921
• Public oral-hygiene lectures
• Mass tooth-brushing activities for children
• Dental-health education for mothers and children
• Development of fluoride-containing toothpaste
• Preventive-dentistry products such as Clinica and Systema

This heritage helps explain why LION’s brand identity has traditionally been strongly associated with health, hygiene and daily habits.1

Environmental considerations have been part of LION’s corporate activities for decades. The company began addressing these issues more systematically during the 1970s; in 1973, for example, it developed Seseragi, a phosphate-free detergent, ahead of many industry trends.1

Subsequent initiatives have included biodegradable surfactants, plant-derived raw materials, concentrated detergents, reduced packaging, water and energy efficiency, toothbrush recycling, environmental labelling and sustainable manufacturing. According to company records, all LION factories received ISO 14001 environmental-management certification in 2001.1

In 2006, LION launched its ECO LION Declaration and established environmental criteria known as the Lion Eco Standards.1

LION’s philosophy has evolved from founder Tomijiro Kobayashi’s principle of contributing to society through business, described as “working for the benefit of people and society”. This ethos has influenced the company’s approach to products, education and sustainability.1

Its current purpose is: “Make a difference in everyday lives by redesigning habits.” LION refers to this concept as “ReDesign”. Rather than simply selling soap, toothpaste or detergent, the company seeks to make everyday behaviours healthier, easier, cleaner and more sustainable.1

While the name LION provides a distinctive visual identity, the brand’s positioning centres on everyday usefulness and health rather than luxury or status. The company’s historical identity can be summarised around several themes:1

• Health — particularly oral and personal health
• Cleanliness — laundry, dishwashing and household hygiene
• Science — R&D-driven product development
• Everyday habits — encouraging better daily routines
• Family — especially visible in children’s and household products
• Sustainability — reducing environmental impact while maintaining product performance

This combination has enabled LION to operate across categories that might otherwise appear unrelated.1

In Japan, LION is one of the major household and personal-care manufacturers, competing with companies such as Kao, Unicharm, P&G Japan and other domestic and international firms. Its competitive strength derives partly from the breadth of its portfolio; a consumer may encounter LION across multiple aspects of daily life, from brushing teeth and washing hands to showering, laundering, dishwashing, bathroom cleaning and using healthcare products. This ubiquity underpins the company’s modern “everyday habits” positioning.1

LION has grown substantially since its 1891 origins. As of December 2025, the company reported:1

• 8,346 consolidated employees
• ¥34.4 billion in capital
• ¥422 billion in consolidated net sales
• 12 domestic offices, research centres and plants
• 8 domestic affiliates
• Business extending well beyond Japan into overseas markets

The business mix reflects how far LION has evolved beyond its original toothpaste-and-soap identity, with overseas operations accounting for a substantial portion of group sales.1

LION continues to develop new products around its core themes of health, cleanliness, convenience and sustainability. Recent examples include:1

• OCH-TUNE oral-care products introduced in 2024
• NANOX one concentrated laundry detergent
• New LOOK toilet-cleaning products
• New Acron formulations
• New CHARMY dishwashing products
• Expansion of pharmaceutical manufacturing capabilities in Vietnam

In 2026, LION announced plans for a new pharmaceutical-products plant at a consolidated subsidiary in Vietnam, illustrating the company’s continuing expansion of its Asian manufacturing and healthcare operations.1

It is important to note that “LION” does not denote an identical product portfolio in every country. The parent company is LION Corporation of Japan, while individual markets may have local subsidiaries, joint ventures, brands, formulations and product ranges. For example, LION Corporation (Thailand) Limited is a Thai company established through a Japanese–Thai joint venture in 1967.2 Consequently, a LION toothpaste, detergent or personal-care product sold in one market may differ in formulation, packaging, branding or distribution from its counterpart in another.

1. Company Overview | About Us | Lion Corporation
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