Toyo Cork Kogyo Co. was formed on January 30, 1920, in Hiroshima, Japan. Initially, the Hiroshima-based firm produced artificial corks. ¹⁾

Jujiro Matsuda, a renowned Japanese manager and entrepreneur, resurrected it in 1927. He abandoned the failed cork production business and concentrated on vehicle manufacture, and the firm began to recover. ²⁾

Initially, the plant manufactured tiny three-wheeled vehicles and motorbikes. ³⁾

After World War II, the Japanese company officially adopted the name Mazda and started to make products under its own logo. ⁴⁾