Midori History: MD Paper, Traveler's and Designphil

A brown leather Traveler's notebook and a cream MD Notebook beside a Midori and Designphil timeline from 1950 to 2026 — Seven dates in Midori's history, from Midori Shokai in 1950 to the MD PRODUCT brand in 2026, as Designphil's Japanese records give them.

Key takeaways

Designphil was founded on December 26, 1950 as Midori Shokai (みどり商會), selling letter paper under a running-courier mark; it became Midori Co., Ltd. in 1963.
MD stands for Midori Diary: Midori developed the paper in-house in the 1960s for its diaries; the cream version came in 2006, the MD Notebook in January 2008 and MD Paper Cotton in 2013.
The Traveler's notebook went on sale in March 2006 with five refills and a leather cover stamped MADE IN THAILAND; the passport size followed in March 2009.
Midori renamed itself Designphil in 2007 and set up Designphil Holdings in 2013; the Midori name now belongs to one of six brands, alongside TRAVELER'S COMPANY, PLOTTER and, since 2026, MD PRODUCT.
Designphil had 230 employees in June 2026 and sells Midori, TRAVELER'S COMPANY and MD PRODUCT through distributors in 47 countries and regions.

Midori is the name on MD Notebooks, paintable stamps and Chiratto clips, and for years it was the name on the Traveler’s notebook too. All of them come from one Tokyo company, Designphil. Every date below comes from Designphil’s own Japanese pages and press releases, and from its brands’ sites, translated by us.

What is the history of Midori?

Midori began in 1950 as Midori Shokai, a Tokyo maker of letter paper, notebooks and sketchbooks, and became Designphil Inc. in 2007, when Midori turned from a company name into a brand. Designphil’s profile gives the founding date as December 26, 1950.

Today Designphil runs six lifestyle brands: Midori, TRAVELER’S COMPANY, MD PRODUCT, KNOX, PLOTTER and TOUCH & FLOW. Its profile lists 230 employees in June 2026 and a factory and product center in Nagareyama, Chiba. Our who owns which stationery brands story lists Designphil among the makers no outside group owns.

Midori and Designphil timeline: 1950 to 2026

The story runs from letter paper in 1950 to a new MD PRODUCT brand in 2026. Dates are from Designphil’s history page unless noted.

Date	Event	Source
December 26, 1950	Midori Shokai (株式会社みどり商會) founded; makes letter paper under a running-courier mark, notebooks and sketchbooks	Designphil profile and history
1952	Begins making business diaries to order	Designphil history
1960s	Develops MD (Midori Diary) paper for its own diaries	Designphil press release, 2008
1963	Renamed Midori Co., Ltd. (株式会社ミドリ)	Designphil history
1964	Nagareyama factory, Chiba, completed	Designphil history
1970s	Exports begin	Designphil overseas page
1987	Present Midori logo completed	Designphil history
1998	Buys Toyo Seikaban, a bag maker, and renames it KNOX	Designphil history
March 2006	Traveler’s notebook launched with five refills; MD Paper Cream launched	TRAVELER’S COMPANY; MD PRODUCT
2006	Head office moves to Ebisu, Tokyo	Designphil history
2007	Renamed Designphil Inc. (株式会社デザインフィル)	Designphil history
January 2008	MD Notebook launched	Designphil press release, 2008
March 2009	Traveler’s notebook passport size	TRAVELER’S COMPANY
October 2011	Traveler’s Factory opens in Nakameguro, Tokyo	Designphil brand page
2013	Designphil Holdings set up as a pure holding company; MD Paper Cotton developed	Designphil history; MD PRODUCT
2014	Traveler’s notebook separated from the Midori brand as TRAVELER’S COMPANY	Designphil history
2017	PLOTTER brand launched	Designphil history
2019	Designphil America, Inc. founded	Designphil history
2026	MD paper products separated from Midori as the MD PRODUCT brand	Designphil history

What did Midori make first?

Paper: Designphil’s history says Midori Shokai began by making and selling letter paper, notebooks and sketchbooks, with its letter paper sold under a running-courier (飛脚印) mark. Two years later, in 1952, it started making business diaries to order for companies, which Designphil calls the foundation of its corporate business.

The company took the name Midori Co., Ltd. in 1963 and opened its Nagareyama factory in Chiba in 1964. The profile still lists a factory and product center in Nagareyama.

Designphil’s overseas page says exports began in the 1970s. In 1998 Midori bought a bag maker, Toyo Seikaban, and renamed it KNOX, after the bag brand it had started in Tokyo’s Minami-Aoyama in 1979.

Where does MD paper come from?

MD paper is Midori Diary paper, which Midori developed in-house in the 1960s for its diaries. A Designphil press release of October 30, 2008 says the paper was chosen because it writes well, is fairly opaque, and resists feathering and bleed-through even with a fountain pen.

For most of its life MD paper was white and used inside Midori diaries and memo pads, according to MD PRODUCT’s paper page. A cream version came in 2006, and in January 2008 Midori built a notebook around it: the thread-sewn, plain-covered MD Notebook. MD Paper Cotton, with 20% cotton pulp, followed in 2013.

Our guides cover the MD Notebook A5, the MD Notebook Cotton and the MD Paper Pad. In 2026, Designphil’s history says, the MD paper products left the Midori brand to form a brand of their own, MD PRODUCT.

How did the Traveler’s notebook start?

Midori launched the Traveler’s notebook in Japan in March 2006, with five types of refill, as “a notebook for spending every day as if traveling”. The refills slip into a leather cover held shut by an elastic cord.

A March 7, 2016 post on the TRAVELER’S COMPANY blog says the first covers were stamped MADE IN THAILAND and MIDORI CO., LTD. After the company changed its name in July 2007, the stamp lost the “CO., LTD”, so covers with the full stamp were made for only a little over a year.

TRAVELER’S COMPANY says the passport size came in March 2009, and brass products and spiral notebooks in March 2010. In October 2011 the brand opened its first shop, Traveler’s Factory, in an old paper-processing building in Nakameguro, Tokyo, followed by Narita Airport in 2014, Tokyo Station in 2017 and Kyoto in 2020.

Our Traveler’s Notebook Regular and Passport guides cover the sizes and refills.

Why did Midori become Designphil?

In 2007 Midori Co., Ltd. renamed itself Designphil Inc., and Midori became a product brand rather than the company’s name. Designphil says the name joins “Design” with “Philharmony”, which it explains as a love of harmony, as in an orchestra, for brands that each keep their character and play together.

The company had moved its head office to Ebisu, Tokyo, in 2006. In 2013 it set up Designphil Holdings as a pure holding company, with Designphil and a sister company as its wholly owned subsidiaries.

The brands have since multiplied. Designphil’s history says it split the Traveler’s notebook from Midori as TRAVELER’S COMPANY in 2014, launched the PLOTTER binder-notebook brand in 2017 and opened a PLOTTER shop in Tokyo in 2025.

Who owns Midori today?

Designphil Inc. of Tokyo, which belongs to its own holding company, Designphil Holdings, rather than to any outside group. Its profile lists Ichiro Aida as chairman and Yuri Aida as president.

Designphil says it sells Midori, TRAVELER’S COMPANY and MD PRODUCT through distributors in 47 countries and regions as of October 2026, working with Designphil America, Inc., founded in 2019, in North America. In our guides the Midori name still appears on MD products, stamps, stickers and clips such as the Chiratto index clip.

What couldn’t we confirm?

Designphil’s pages disagree by a year on when the Traveler’s notebook left the Midori brand. The company history says 2014; the TRAVELER’S COMPANY page says the brand name changed from Midori to TRAVELER’S COMPANY in 2015, and the brand’s 2016 blog post says the move came at the end of 2015. We give both.

We found no Designphil page that names the founder of Midori Shokai or the exact year in the 1960s when MD paper was first made.

Frequently asked questions

Is Midori the same company as Designphil?

Yes. Midori Co., Ltd. renamed itself Designphil Inc. in 2007, and Midori became one of its brands. Designphil's own history says it was founded in 1950 as Midori Shokai.

What does MD stand for in MD paper?

Midori Diary. Designphil's 2008 press release calls it MD用紙 (Midori Diary paper), a paper Midori developed in the 1960s for its own diaries because it resists feathering and bleed-through, even with fountain pens.

When did the Traveler's notebook come out?

In March 2006, from Midori, with five types of refill. TRAVELER'S COMPANY says the passport size followed in March 2009 and the brass products and spiral notebooks in March 2010.

Who makes the Traveler's notebook now?

TRAVELER'S COMPANY, a brand and division of Designphil in Tokyo. Designphil's history says it split the Traveler's notebook from the Midori brand in 2014; the brand's own page dates the change of name to 2015.

Is Midori a Japanese brand?

Yes. Midori belongs to Designphil Inc., a Tokyo company founded in 1950 whose factory and product center are in Nagareyama, Chiba. Its Traveler's notebook covers have been made in Thailand from the start.

What is MD PRODUCT?

The new name, from 2026, for Midori's MD paper line: MD Notebooks, MD paper pads and MD diaries. Designphil's history says it split MD PAPER PRODUCTS from the Midori brand that year and opened a separate online store.

What does the name Designphil mean?

It joins "Design" with "Philharmony". Designphil says the second word means a love of harmony, as in an orchestra's name, and expresses its wish for its brands to play together like an orchestra.

Sources (9)

Plain-text version for AI agents: midori-history.md · Spotted an error? See how we check facts.