About the Hobonichi Techo

Years

2002

The Hobonichi Techo
is Born!

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Published copies: 

12,000

Covers in lineup: 

1

Release date: 

October 5, 2001

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Memo pad sized to match the techo book

The cover interior contained yellow sewn tags.

An article entitled “The Success Story of the Hobonichi Techo” outlined details of the book’s creation and sales.

2003

Introducing
the “butterfly clasp”
pen holders

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Published copies: 

18,000

Covers in lineup: 

4 (1 book type)

Release date: 

October 16, 2002

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Ballpoint pen

The cover came in four colors: “Orange Orange,” “Mystery Gray,” “Tomato Red,” and “Olive Green.”

The design of the daily pages in the 2003-edition book. Included beneath the date were illustrated checkboxes, with a line atop each page to give the day a title.

2004

The addition of the
leather covers

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Published copies: 

30,000

Covers in lineup: 

8 (1 book type)

Release date: 

September 29, 2003

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Ballpoint pen, Hobonichi original sticky notes, memo pad

The secret line allows users to separate their schedule from the free writing space on the right. Look closely, and you’ll see the only difference is that the vertical line has a solid line, while the rest of the graph paper design is printed in dotted lines.

The lineup contained subdued color schemes suitable for the workplace as well.

2005

Sales begin
at Loft stores

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Published copies: 

70,000

Covers in lineup: 

11 (1 book type)

Release date: 

September 7, 2004

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Pencil board, ballpoint pen, memo pad, Cover on Cover

The popular Cover on Cover fits over the techo cover and can store photographs and other decorations, as well as protect the cover from marks and grime.

Our first in-person sales began at the newly renovated Funabashi Loft (now closed).

2006

Introduction of
the official guidebook

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Published copies: 

70,000

Covers in lineup: 

11 (1 book type)

Release date: 

September 7, 2005

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Hobonichi memo pad, ballpoint pen, memo pad, Cover on Cover

The monthly calendar made it onto the daily pages for the first time this year.

We called this year’s lineup the “Super Rainbow.”

The first guidebook was called “The Secret to the Hobonichi Techo.”

2007

The possibilities
of Faux Fabric

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Published copies: 

230,000

Covers in lineup: 

17 (1 book type)

Release date: 

September 7, 2006

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Hobonichi memo pad, ballpoint pen, Cover on Cover (select covers only)

This Faux Fabric cover, “Houndstooth Print,” was the long-in-coming result of the team’s desire to have a cover with a pattern.

This “wallet techo” featured a flap over a pocket for storing coins and other small items, but the feature was pulled from the design after just one year, as the pocket made it hard to write over the flap. The Hobonichi Techo cover has reached the design it has today through much trial and error.

2008

Coloring things up
with two-tone covers

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Published copies: 

250,000

Covers in lineup: 

20 (1 book type)

Release date: 

September 1, 2007

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Memo pad, ballpoint pen, lunar calendar bookmark, Cover on Cover

This year marked the introduction of two-tone covers. These new nylon covers had a cheerful yet subdued look.

The accessories section made its way into the Hobonichi Store this year. The lineup included the previously offered memo pads, sticky notes, and address books alongside weekly booklets, a railway map, a vertical notepad, a photo album, and more.

Here’s the new logo created by Tomoko Takamori to give each cover a handmade look. The colors were specially chosen to work with each cover color, and the design was a big hit.

2009

Major design change
and introduction
of the Cousin

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Published copies: 

280,000

Covers in lineup: 

30 (3 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2008

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Memo pad, ballpoint pen, lunar calendar leaflet 2009, Cover on Cover

The inspiration for the Cousin actually came from frequent user comments that the Hobonichi Techo was heavy. The team figured they could make the Hobonichi Techo Original seem light by producing a book that was even bigger and heavier!

Designer Taku Satoh meticulously updated the design to something more intuitive and comfortable, changing the criss-crossing dotted lines to meet evenly at every intersection and cleaning up the timeline to make the numbers easier to read.

2010

Dramatic increase
in cover designs

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Published copies: 

350,000

Covers in lineup: 

54 (3 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2009

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Hobonichi Stencil, ballpoint pen, Kotobuki Shiriagari bookmark, Cover on Cover

The World Folk Patterns series made its debut this year, with three covers themed after Mexico, Finland, and Africa.

After running surveys and holding round-table discussions with users, the meticulously crafted graph paper was locked in at 3.7 mm. The squares were 4 mm in 2008, 3.45 mm in 2009, and polished to the just-right 3.7 mm in 2010.

2011

Welcoming
the 10th year with
the new Weeks techo

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Published copies: 

400,000

Covers in lineup: 

56 (4 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2010

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

OHTO card thermometer, ballpoint pen, Kotobuki Shiriagari bookmark, Cover on Cover

The trademark White Line Weeks design was actually created by mistake! Taku Satoh made a rough sketch of an all-black Weeks, with a view of the spine on the left and a view of the cover on the right. Shigesato Itoi, thinking it was a single sketch of the front cover, praised the white line running down the side of the cover. Taku, surprised but convinced it was a good idea, finalized the cover design that’s still popular today.

“Black Case” was created in collaboration with Porter, and greatly broadened the possibilities of the techo. The case was both a techo cover and a bag, and was a big hit among the male employees at Hobonichi.

2012

The theme was “Smile”

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Published copies: 

460,000

Covers in lineup: 

71 (4 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2011

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Smile mirror, ballpoint pen, Kotobuki Shiriagari bookmark, Cover on Cover

mina perhonen’s Akira Minagawa provided the light hearted sketch for this cover, “Smile,” to set the mood for the overall 2012 Hobonichi Techo lineup.

Shigesato Itoi penned the catchphrase “It’s okay to be this stylish” for the Weeks, now in its second year. It was originally created for use in professional settings, but all kinds of people made use of the book.

2013

The English version
is complete.
Time to head overseas!

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Published copies: 

480,000

Covers in lineup: 

82 (5 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2012

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Carrying bag, ballpoint pen, Kotobuki Shiriagari bookmark, Cover on Cover

“& Child,” created with the children’s brand Kodomo Beams, was one of the most striking covers this year.

The English version, named “Planner,” featured a chic new design with charcoal gray and red print. In order to accommodate a variety of international languages, the graph paper was enlarged to 4 mm. The front of the cover is gold foil-pressed with the word “techo” in Japanese.

2014

I’m having fun
this year.

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Published copies: 

500,000

Covers in lineup: 

98 (5 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2013

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

“Potenbag”, ballpoint pen, Kotobuki Shiriagari bookmark, Cover on Cover

Costume artist Kodue Hibino’s cover “Forest Bear” made a big splash this year. The bookmarks had bells on the ends.

Gugi Akiyama’s Disney cover designs were also remarkable. Many users were struck by the cover featuring an oversized picture of the face of a Mickey plush doll, saying “I’ve never seen a cover like this before!”

Yugo Nakamura’s promotional video was a big hit around the world. Singer Miu Sakamoto and — interestingly — techo designer Taku Satoh provided the voices singing “Ho! Boniii! Chi! Te! Chooo!”

2015

Introducing the “avec”

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Published copies: 

550,000

Covers in lineup: 

79 (7 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2014

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Hobonichi Tissue Holder, ballpoint pen, Cover on Cover, pencil board

This collaboration cover, “Onett,” features Shigesato Itoi’s video game “Mother 2.” The cover was highly acclaimed by game fans, including those outside of Japan.

This year was the first time the techo was available in two separate books, called the avec. The covers were moss green and sand beige. (Today they’re lime yellow and ice blue.)

2016

This is my LIFE.

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Published copies: 

610,000

Covers in lineup: 

88 (7 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2015

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Hobonichi Tissue Holder, ballpoint pen, Cover on Cover

Kotori Kawashima recorded this home-movie style video and Shigesato Itoi added the stylized English title, “This is my LIFE.”

This year, we held a meet up with 60 Hobonichi Techo users. We split into 7 groups and talked about all kinds of things. We also held surveys and played games together with all the participants, making it a very fun day for everyone.

2017

The Hobonichi Techo
travels across
the ocean

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Published copies: 

680,000

Covers in lineup: 

84 (7 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2016

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Mini Butter Toast Plate, ballpoint pen, Cover on Cover

Our meet-up event, called “Meeting Caravan,” is always an exciting opportunity for the Hobonichi Techo team to meet users and hear all about how they’re using their techos. The caravan has met up in many places, and has plans to visit many more.

The “Traveling Hobonichi” is a book that was sent around the world among fellow Hobonichi Techo fans, with each person filling out pages and sending it to the next person. The result was a one-of-a-kind collaborative of love. The book even contained a hand-drawn comic, with each person adding a scene at a time.

2018

Introducing the
Hobonichi
5-Year Techo

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Published copies: 

780,000

Covers in lineup: 

90 (9 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2017

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Meal Decider Dice, ballpoint pen, Cover on Cover

The newest Hobonichi Techo book, the Hobonichi 5-Year Techo, features a soft cover reminiscent of traditional dictionaries. The book contains all the best features of the standard Hobonichi Techo, with graph paper pages, Tomoe River paper, lay-flat binding, and more.

The Drawer Pouch also joined the lineup as a companion to the Hobonichi Techo. The pouch acts as a “portable drawer” that can store all your favorite items.

2019

Hello to all our users
in China

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Published copies: 

850,000

Covers in lineup: 

103 covers, 11 book types

Release date: 

September 1, 2018

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Not-Scary Bear Paperweight, ballpoint pen

The Simplified Chinese version is the same design as the Japanese A6 Original Hobonichi Techo, and contains all Chinese holidays. The product was created after opening sales in China for the first time last year.

Every year, a portion of the sales of certain covers are donated to an animal welfare organization. In the 2019 lineup, these covers include the Bouillon series and Ryoji Arai’s A6 cover.

2020

Introducing the Day-Free!

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Published copies: 

750,000

Covers in lineup: 

90 (13 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2019

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Small Hobonichi Hyakunin-isshu, ballpoint pen

The Day-Free is Hobonichi’s all-new monthly notebook. It comes in A6 and A5 sizes and has a new layout of blank memo pages with daily quotes on the bottom. The corner of the notebook has a flip book animation.

The Small Hobonichi Hyakunin-isshu is a deck of 100 karuta cards illustrated by Radio Wada that contain traditional Japanese poems. These cards are a special take on a unique Japanese tradition.

2021

Thank you for 20 Years.

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Published copies: 

740,000

Covers in lineup: 

120 (14 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2020

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Hobonichi Brush Pen (with mini hanshi papers), ballpoint pen

We've collaborated with classic mangas loved my many: Astro Boy, Doraemon, Ranma 1/2 and Chibi Maruko-chan, to create the Japan Manga Classics series covers. We've prepared lots of pencil boards that you can use alongside it.

After it first appeared as the 2002 edition, the Hobonichi Techo turned 20 with the 2021 edition. To express our gratitude, the monkey that appears on the back of the book says "Thank you for 20th!"

2022

An even more varied
lineup including techos
related to Kanda

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Published copies: 

???

Covers in lineup: 

101 (15 book types)

Release date: 

September 1, 2021

Hobonichi Store Exclusives: 

Not-Scary Bear's Little Spoon, ballpoint pen

As Hobonichi moved to Kanda, Tokyo, we made techo covers, Weeks books, and accessories related to Kanda, such as western sweets shop Omiya Yogashiten, manga artist Taiyo Matsumoto’s drawing of the town of Kanda named Cat Over Kanda, and Weeks book Wassoi! created under the theme of Japanese festivals.

The Day-Free is a monthly notebook techo that was introduced from the 2020 edition. In the 2022 edition, children’s book author Shinsuke Yoshitake specially drew illustrations for the corners of the blank graph paper notebook pages. It features scenes from the everyday life such as a child sitting on a chair.