is a major transportation company in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. Its headquarters are in Minami-ku, Kyoto

Minami-ku, Kyoto

is one of the eleven wards in the city of Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Its name means "South Ward." It was established in 1955 when it was separated from Shimogyo-ku. As of April, 2008 the ward has an estimated population of 98,320 people. The Kamo River and the Katsura River flow through...

. It competes with Yamato Transport

Yamato Transport

is one of Japan's largest door-to-door delivery service companies with market share of 41%, competing closely with Sagawa Express and Nippon Express...

, Nippon Express

Nippon Express

is a worldwide leader in logistics services. Its head office is based in Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1937 in line with the Nippon Tsu-un Kaisha Law as a semi-government transportation service.Nippon Express annual revenues exceed $14 billion USD...

 and other major logistics

Logistics

Logistics is the management of the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of destination in order to meet the requirements of customers or corporations. Logistics involves the integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing, material handling, and packaging, and...

 companies. Its total sales for the year ending March 2005 were ¥728,000,000,000.

The company was founded by Kiyoshi Sagawa. It began operation on March 22, 1957, and was registered as a company on November 24, 1965. On March 21, 2006, it established SG Holdings and transferred its stock to SG, becoming a subsidiary of the holding company.

Sagawa's major customers include Amway

Amway

Amway is a direct selling company and manufacturer that uses network marketing to sell a variety of products, primarily in the health, beauty, and home care markets. Amway was founded in 1959 by Jay Van Andel and Richard DeVos...

, Amazon.co.jp, Softbank BB, Yamada Denki

Yamada Denki

is one of the largest consumer electronics retailer chains in Japan. Some of its stores also sell other products, such as books.-Overview:The company was founded in 1973 as a privately-owned store. Yamada Denki Co., Ltd. was established in 1983...

, Culture Convenience Club

Culture Convenience Club

is a Japanese company that operates Tsutaya, a nationwide chain of rental shops and bookstores. The company is headquartered in Ebisu, Tokyo. The stock of the company is listed in the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange ....

 (Tsutaya), Keyence

Keyence

is a company which produces sensors, barcode readers, vision systems, measuring equipment and digital microscopes.-Global:Keyence Corporation is a global company with a network of 16 international organizations that specializes in factory automation...

, Sony Style, Askul, and Digital Media Mart.

Galaxy Airlines of Japan is a member of the group of companies.

1992 scandal

From 1992 the company was the center of a series of corruption and yakuza

Yakuza

, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...

-link allegations that helped bring down the ruling LDP, and then the reformist Prime Minister Morihiro Hosokawa

Morihiro Hosokawa

is a Japanese politician who was the 79th Prime Minister of Japan from August 9, 1993 to April 28, 1994. His coalition was the first non-Liberal Democratic Party government since 1955.- Early life :...

.

Source

This article incorporates material in 佐川急便 (Sagawa Kyūbin) in the Japanese Wikipedia, retrieved on January 3, 2008.

Further reading

• Sagawa Kyūbin Saiken 3650 nichi no Tatakai: Yonmannin no Ishiki Kakumei ISBN 4879320307
• Fushichō Sagawa Kyūbin: Fumetsu no Teiōgaku ISBN 4916007263
• Sagawa Kyūbin no Daihenshin: SD (Sales Driver) o Kaku to shita "Kōshūeki Keiei" no Himitsu" ISBN 4757300204

External links

• Sagawa Express, Official website
• SG Holdings, Official website