| 1885: | Momotanijuntenkan is established in Kokawa (Wakayama Prefecture). "BIGANSUI Acne Lotion" goes on sale. |
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| 1913: | Cosmetics Test Department is established ahead of the industry. "BIGAN SOAP" is released in alliance with UN-based Lever Brothers, Inc. (the predecessor to the current Unilever). |
| 1914: | The Company has the honor of supplying cosmetics products to the Japanese Imperial family. |
| 1918: | Suifu Kishimoto, one of Japan’s most renowned Senryu (satirical haiku) poets, joins the Company’s advertising department. |
| 1920: | Research on the way to make lead-free face powder is implemented to resolve the problem of lead poison, and an ingredient manufacturing factory is newly constructed.(Patent acquired on the production method) |
| 1922: | The Company has the honor of supplying the BIGAN cosmetics series to the Japanese Emperor. |
| 1927: | Masajiro Momotani is awarded the "Legion d’Honneur" by the French Government for his significant contribution to promoting the cosmetics industry and establishing the France-Kansai Institute of Kansai (Institut franco-japonais du Kansai). |
| 1928: | Masajiro Momotani is awarded the "Medal with Green Ribbon" and the "Medal with Dark Blue Ribbon" by the Japanese government for his contribution to the cosmetics industry and society at large. |
| 1932: | "MEISHOKU Cleansing Cream," which removes makeup with oil components, is released. |
| 1932: | Masayoshi Ohira (who later became Prime Minister of Japan) joins the Company. |
| 1936: | "MEISHOKU Astringent Lotion," featuring a buffer effect, is released as Japan’s first mild acidic cosmetic product. (Patent acquired on the production method) |
| 1951: | The catchphrase "A beautiful woman is made at night" is created. |
| 1962: | As an exclusive agency in Japan, the Company concludes a technology/manufacturing tie-up with 4711, a world-renowned German company for Eau de Cologne. |
| 2012: | "Osaka City Kirameki Company Award" is presented. |
| 2018: | The Company’s products are displayed in the special exhibition "A Thousand Wonders of Japanese Technology" held in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Meiji Period.(Displayed are BIGANSUI Acne Lotion, antipyretic Genetsugan, MEISHOKU Cleansing Cream, and MEISHOKU Astringent Lotion.) |
Masajiro Momotani (1863-1930), the founder of Momotanijuntenkan, was born in a family that operated a pharmacy named "Masakiya", which had been established about 400 years ago, in Kishu Kokawa (present-day Kokawa in Wakayama Prefecture). After graduating from a pharmacy school run by Wakayama Prefecture, he became the first pharmacist in the Kishu region (present-day Wakayama Prefecture) and engaged in drug discovery.
In the Meiji period, when importance came to be placed on Western medicine and pharmaceuticals, Masajiro became a disciple of Dr. Ikujiro Sakurai of Tokyo Imperial University (currently the University of Tokyo), who was renowned as a Western medical scientist, to learn the latest pharmaceutical technology. Under the guidance of Dr. Sakurai, Masajiro created "BIGANSUI Acne Lotion" for his wife, who suffered from acne, by employing a Western medicine formula as Japan’s first attempt. After his return home from Tokyo, his wife’s skin condition was dramatically improved with "BIGANSUI Acne Lotion." It gained a reputation as having high efficacy among local people.
With a strong desire to render services to people, he started selling "BIGANSUI Acne Lotion" in 1885, and it became a big hit nationwide. Later, he expanded sales channels for the product abroad.
"BIGANSUI Acne Lotion," created using salicylic acid and advertised as an anti-acne solution, was initially released as a pharmaceutical cosmetic product. Later, cosmetics, together with pharmaceutical products, came to be regulated strictly from a safety standpoint under the former Pharmaceutical Act. Cosmetics have a long history of development achieved in parallel to that of pharmaceuticals.
Today, homosulfamine, contained in "BIGANSUI Acne Lotion," has been designated as a pharmaceutical ingredient. It is prohibited to use it for cosmetic products. Against such background, BIGANSUI Acne Lotion created with the same formula has long been allowed to be sold due to its vested right.
Historically, "BIGANSUI Acne Lotion" is Japan’s first epoch-making product that determined the direction the cosmetic industry should take. The acne lotion has been certified as "Chemical Heritage" by the Chemical Society of Japan, saying that it is an important historical source in terms of the progress of chemistry and chemical technology in Japan.
