Tasaki, Japan's top pearl jeweler, hit crisis — sold its football team, delisted

Tasaki was founded in 1954 by Shunsaku Tasaki in Kobe, Japan, and grew into the country's largest pearl jewelry company. By the 1990s it had expanded into diamonds, becoming a DTC sightholder (direct buyer from De Beers) in 1994, and diversified into restaurants, tourism buses, and even a professional women's football club, TASAKI Perule FC.

The company's troubles began in the late 2000s. A major shareholder dispute with Sahara Diamond, which held over 11% of shares, escalated into a boardroom battle. The company's management crisis deepened, and by September 2008, Tasaki was forced to sell training centers and dormitories to raise cash. Its women's football club, TASAKI Perule FC, was withdrawn from the Japan Women's Football League due to the deterioration of the company's finances, and the club was dissolved.

Tasaki survived the 2008 crisis but never fully recovered its independence. The company closed or sold multiple pearl farms and factories across Japan, including farms in Imari, Hirado, Amakusa, and Amami, and its marine biology research institute. The restaurant and tourism bus divisions were also exited. For nearly a decade, the company struggled under the weight of its debt and the 2008 crisis aftermath.

In 2017, the company was taken private through a management buyout (MBO) led by MBK Partners, a Korean private equity firm. MBK acquired 83.77% of Tasaki's shares, and the company was delisted from the stock exchange. Under new ownership, Tasaki was restructured, refocused on its core pearl and jewelry business, and returned to profitability. By 2025, the company reported 27.9 billion yen in revenue with stable profits.