Tokyo-based Kabuku is a Japanese company that manages Rinkak, a 3D printing service we have reported on previously as they were gaining steam earlier this year with a large grant. Rinkak is a progressive 3D printing community and marketplace offering users the ability to:
- Create data with CG software/CAD and upload data.
- Make or have products 3D printed in many different materials.
- Sell them on the Rinkak marketplace.
Today, they announced that they will be partnering up with a factory in the US so that they can bring faster and better service to their customers. This should further their goal in making it easier for virtually anyone to design, 3D print, and sell items from their marketplace. The partner factory will be able to give quotes through the Rinkak system, manage manufacturing and delivery, and cut costs enormously.
Kabuku points out in their announcement today that this is the ‘commencement’ of working to create partnerships with factories around the world, to feed the growing demand for services from Rinkak and have items shipped quickly and more affordably.
Having been described as the Shapeways of Japan, Kabuku manages a variety of products and services ‘about digital fabrications which are designed to suit new hardware, software, and industrial design.’
One such unique project is a 3D printed jewelry collection called mOment, which features jewelry made via 3D printing as well as traditional techniques. A collection of rings, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings, the pieces were made using a combination of cutting edge 3D print and traditional Japanese hand dyeing techniques called Aizome, which means indigo dying. The products are available on Rinkak, and mOment was in the news after Kabuku received a $2 million in funding from Cyber Agent Ventures to launch the line. Other projects offered through Rinkak by Kabuku are:
- A publication, the daily Digital Made Magazine, offering the latest information in digital fabrication
- Rinkak 3D collage, which allows users to create 3D printed figures using their picture
- 3D Printing Project Ara
- Rinkak DecoBoco Map, which is a 3D printable map service
- A guidebook, The Practical Guide on 3D Printing
Rinkak Angry Bird Eggholder
Rinkak offers 3D printed items for sale in the areas of home, jewelry, miniatures, hobby items, and kitchen knicknacks.
Founded in 2013 by CEO Masahiko Inada, Kabuku holds the origins of its name, as you may have surmised, from the word kabuki, which is known today as a classical Japanese art best described as a dance-drama.
Kabuku is meant to describe ‘a cutting edge look and behavior with the power to bring in a new era.’ Their goal is create new items that their users will enjoy greatly and carry into the future. Kabuku has gained a lot of momentum in a short amount of time, and we look forward to reporting on their future progress.
Have you checked out any of Rinkak’s offerings previously? Tell us about it in the Kabuku Partners Up with US Factory forum at 3DPB.com.
Founder, Masahiko Inada
