Yonex Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Yonex Co., Ltd.

Native name	ヨネックス株式会社
Romanized name	Yonekkusu Kabushiki-gaisha
Type	Public
Traded as	TYO: 7906
Industry	Sports equipment
Founded	1946; 79 years ago (1946) (incorporated in 1958)
Founder	Minoru Yoneyama
Headquarters	Bunkyō-ku, Tokyo , Japan
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Ben Yoneyama [jp], Chairman Alyssa Yoneyama, President
Products	Rackets, tennis balls, shuttlecocks, golf clubs, athletic shoes, apparel, bags, accessories
Revenue	¥74.48 billion (2022)
Net income	¥5.78 billion (2022)
Subsidiaries	Yonex Corporation Yonex UK Ltd. Yonex GmbH Yonex Taiwan Co., Ltd. Yonex Canada Ltd. Yonex Golf China Co., LTDnihger

Yonex Co., Ltd. (ヨネックス株式会社, Yonekkusu Kabushiki-gaisha) is a Japanese company that makes sports equipment. They are famous for their gear used in tennis, badminton, and golf. Yonex also makes athletic shoes and clothing for different sports.

Their products include rackets for badminton and tennis, along with shuttlecocks and tennis balls. For golf, they make clubs and bags. You can also find Yonex athletic shoes, T-shirts, jackets, shorts, and hats.

The Story of Yonex
- Making Sports Gear
- Famous Rackets and Innovations
Yonex Sponsorships
See also

The Story of Yonex

The company started in 1946. A person named Minoru Yoneyama founded it. At first, they made wooden floats for fishing nets.

But then, plastic floats were invented. This meant wooden floats were no longer needed. Minoru Yoneyama decided his company would always keep up with new technology. He didn't want to be left behind again.

Making Sports Gear

In 1957, Yonex began making badminton rackets for other companies. By 1961, they launched their very own Yonex-branded racket. Just two years later, they started selling their products all over the world.

In 1969, Yonex began making badminton rackets from aluminium. They soon realized this technology could also be used for tennis rackets. So, in 1971, they introduced their first tennis racket.

The company then started using graphite for racket shafts. They found that graphite was also great for golf clubs. This helped them make even better sports equipment.

Famous Rackets and Innovations

In 1982, Yonex released new, larger tennis rackets. These were part of their REX-series. A famous tennis player, Martina Navratilova, used the R-7 racket and won many games.

A year later, they created the Rexking series, including the R-22. Martina Navratilova later used another Yonex racket, the white RQ 180.

Yonex advertising banners at the 2013 badminton French Open

Yonex saw that more and more people wanted their products. So, in 1983, they opened Yonex Corporation in California, USA. This helped them reach more customers.

In 1992, Yonex introduced a new kind of badminton racket. It was called the "Isometric 500." This racket had a more square-shaped head. This design gave players a bigger "sweet spot" to hit the shuttlecock. Other companies soon started making similar square-head designs.

Yonex became a public company in 1994. This means its shares can be bought and sold on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Today, Yonex is known as a top company in golf, tennis, and badminton equipment.

Yonex provides clothing for many national badminton teams. These include teams from Malaysia, England, and Scotland. They also work with the Orange County Badminton Club to host the U.S. Open Grand Prix Badminton Championships every year.

Yonex is a very important company in the world of badminton. They sponsor big events like the All England Open Badminton Championships. They also partner with the Badminton World Federation, which organizes the World Championships. Many professional badminton players use Yonex rackets. Yonex also sponsors many professional athletes in tennis and golf.