Source: Epson

Epson Celebrates 50th Anniversary of the Epson Brand

Seiko Epson Corporation announces that the Epson brand will celebrate its 50th anniversary on June 12, 2025.

The longevity and success of the Epson brand was made possible through the support and loyalty to our products and services. In celebration of the 50th anniversary, Epson will revisit the meaning of the brand and strive to deliver surprise and delight that exceed our customers’ expectations.As a company, Epson traces its roots back to 1942 and the watchmaking industry. For more than eight decades, Epson has continued to advance the efficient, compact and precise technologies that it first developed for watches and that have become a part of the DNA that has been passed down from generation to generation.

Leveraging these core technologies and adhering to the founding principles of “Integrity and Effort” and “Creativity and Challenge,” Epson has continued to innovate, creating innumerable products and abundant value. Company sales have expanded along with Epson’s sales network, which spans the world, from the Americas to Asia, Europe, and other regions in between.

Epson’s Technological Innovation and New Value Creation: The ‘Children’ of the EP

Epson launched its first information equipment product, the compact and lightweight EP-101 digital electronic printer, in 1968. It was this printer that served as the impetus for the creation of the Epson brand, in 1975.

The brand name reflects the company’s hopes of preserving the value of the electronic printer (EP) while continuing to create many valuable derivatives (SONs). This brand embodies a desire to capitalize on Epson’s unique efficient, compact and precise technologies to deliver innovative products and services that provide value to people around the world.

This desire was realized with the launch of a compact and lightweight computer printer. Years of effort eventually culminated, in 1993, with the release of the MJ-500, an inkjet printer equipped with Epson’s proprietary Micro Piezo ink ejection technology. The following year, Epson launched the MJ-700V2C, the world’s first printer to deliver high-resolution (720 dpi) at an affordable price (less than 100,000 yen).

Epson was thus instrumental in creating a new culture of printing high-quality photos at home. Later, in 2010, feedback from business users in emerging markets convinced us to develop and launch a printer equipped with high-capacity ink tanks.

Epson’s high-capacity ink tank printers are currently sold in 170 countries and regions around the world, and cumulative sales have surpassed 100 million units as of the end of September 2024.

Micro Piezo technology continued to evolve, with Epson developing next-generation printhead technology called “PrecisionCore.” PrecisionCore has made it possible to develop a wide range of products, not only for the home and office but also for commercial and industrial applications. Epson’s printheads are recognized for their outstanding quality and, in addition to Epson printers, are widely used in third-party printers, making Epson a leading supplier of printheads used in industrial inkjet machines.

For offices, the LX-10000F, a high-speed linehead inkjet multifunction printer released in 2017, delivers 100 sheets per minute. Blazing speed, outstanding durability, excellent maintainability, and the unequaled energy-efficiency of inkjet systems make it a compelling replacement for office laser printers.

In the commercial and industrial printing sectors, Epson entered the large-format printer market for professional graphic applications in 2000. Today, Epson is known as the standard inkjet printer for photographers and digital proof printing.

The Monna Lisa 160B, a digital textile printing machine launched in 2003, has earned high praise from designers and the textile industry for its ability to produce a wide variety of products in small quantities, its low waste and small environmental footprint, and its ability to render details on fabrics.

In 2010, as production shifted toward short-run print jobs and product life cycles shortened in industries such as food, beverages, and cosmetics, Epson launched the SurePress series of digital label presses to meet the diverse printing needs of the commercial and industrial sectors.

Delivering Globally

Epson has established production and sales sites around the world in order to deliver value to customers through its products and services. Its overseas expansion began in 1968 with the manufacture of watch cases in Singapore. Epson has since expanded production globally and have major sites in China, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

On the other hand, Epson established its first overseas sales company in 1975, in the U.S. Epson America served as a strategic first step for responding to the rapidly growing computer market at the time and to accelerate global business development. Since then, Epson went on to build a strong global product sales network.