On September 9, 2021, SIGMA celebrates its 60th anniversary.
We would like to use this occasion to express our sincere and deep gratitude to our customers and to everyone who has supported our business since our founding in 1961. This 60th anniversary is only possible thanks to your generous and continuous support.
For us, these 60 years represent not only the months and years of our company but also the countless invaluable moments that have been captured and cherished by all those who love photography. True to the meaning of our company’s name, SIGMA lives because of the sum total of these collected moments and memories, months and years.
Like any anniversary, this is also a moment to look back and remember one’s beginnings. Still today, we hold dear the ideas and ideals that guided us during our earliest years. We will continue to devote ourselves to developing products of real, essential value that our customers can rely on when capturing some of their most cherished moments. We hope you will accompany us on our future endeavors.
Message from
Kazuto Yamaki, CEO of SIGMA
On September 9, 2021, SIGMA celebrates its 60th anniversary. Michihiro Yamaki originally founded the company in 1961 to save a group of cooperating companies that found themselves in peril following the bankruptcy of their supplier, and I believe that no one would have imagined at the time that the company would still exist 60 years later.
In these six decades, SIGMA has braved many difficult situations in our industry, from technological revolutions to challenging economic conditions. At times, we even found ourselves on the cusp of a serious crisis. In such situations, Michihiro Yamaki would think back to the time of the company’s founding and utter a remark that could have seemed pessimistic: “I never thought this company, which I founded on request, would even exist this long.” But the company managed to pull through and recover, and now I, having inherited the business from my father, find myself thinking about these same words, though for different reasons.
We could only stay in business for 60 years and follow our passion of creating brilliant cameras and lenses thanks to the generous support of a great number of people. First and foremost, I would like to thank our customers for their invaluable support and their high expectations towards us and our products. Sometimes the encouragement may come in the form of stern words, but it is always an opportunity for me and the company to reflect and improve ourselves. Thank you for everything.
We are also very grateful for the unfailing support of our dealers, suppliers and all other business partners. We have surely caused you trouble on more than one occasion, and I know that our company has only come this far thanks to your patience and your perseverance. For this, you have my sincere gratitude. Furthermore, we are deeply indebted to the communities in which we and our affiliated companies are located, for their warm support and their understanding. We do not take this for granted.
Lastly, I would like to thank all the senior staff – whether retired or still active – who have shaped our company into what it is today. SIGMA only exists because of your hard work. I promise that we will continue to build upon what you have created. As we embrace the 60th anniversary of our founding, we look back and remember all the kindness and support we were shown during these six decades. Looking forward, we will continue to dedicate ourselves to grow and develop SIGMA into a company that is ready to take on the challenges of a new era, while staying true to the philosophies and ideas that have guided us on our way so far. We hope that you will accompany us on our future journeys.
With heartfelt gratitude to everyone who made this 60th anniversary possible,
Kazuto Yamaki
SIGMA, CEO
via Sigma
