2025: A Year of Growth, Community, and Wrapping with Intention

Keiko Furoshiki Year in Review

As we look back on 2025, we’re filled with gratitude, pride, and a little bit of disbelief at how much this year held for Keiko Furoshiki. What began as a mission to share reusable fabric gift wrap rooted in Japanese tradition continues to grow in ways we couldn’t have imagined — through community, collaboration, and creativity.

This year also brought a very special kind of change behind the scenes. Andrea, the driving force and unofficial CEO of Keiko Furoshiki, and Tyler, who leads our manufacturing and operations, welcomed a new baby into their family. Like many small businesses, we’re built by real people — and in 2025, that meant a little less time at the desk, a few more late nights for different reasons, and a lot more love woven into everything we do.

Even with fewer hours and fuller hearts, we’re proud of what this small-but-mighty team accomplished. Here’s a look back at what made 2025 such a meaningful year for us.

Meaningful Growth (Thanks to You)

In 2025, Keiko Furoshiki experienced a 770% increase in furoshiki sold compared to our first year in business and 157% increase in revenue during BFCM compared to the same period in 2024. While we’ll always care about the numbers, what matters most to us is why they grew: more people choosing reusable wrapping, more conversations about sustainability, and more customers discovering furoshiki as something beautiful and practical.

Every wrap reused, regifted, or repurposed tells us this work matters — and we couldn’t do it without our community.

Showing Up in Our Community (and Yours)

This year, we loved meeting customers face-to-face and sharing the joy of furoshiki in person. In 2025, we sold and connected with our community at:

The Hella Good Deeds Earth Day event
AANHPI Festival in Kansas City
Natsu Matsuri end-of-summer festival
Greater Kansas City Japan Festival

These events reminded us that furoshiki is more than gift wrap — it’s a conversation starter about culture, creativity, and mindful living.

Teaching, Sharing, and Passing It On

Education has always been at the heart of Keiko Furoshiki, and 2025 was another year for workshops and learning.

Keiko led an online furoshiki wrapping workshop with Notion in celebration of AAPI Heritage Month, introducing employees across the US to the history and modern uses of furoshiki.
She also taught an in-person holiday furoshiki workshop with the Johnson County Community College Japan Club, sharing traditional techniques and hands-on wrapping just in time for gift-giving season.

Watching people experience their first furoshiki knot never gets old.

A New Kind of Collaboration: Art Play Silk

In 2025, we stepped into a new creative space through our collaboration with Biggest Little, bringing our artwork and values into the world of open-ended play.

Together, we launched the Art Play Silk — a beautifully designed play silk inspired by Waldorf and Montessori principles, created to encourage imagination, movement, and creativity in children of all ages. This collaboration blended Biggest Little’s deep expertise in the toy industry with Keiko Kira’s original artwork and design sensibility, resulting in a product that feels both playful and intentional.

Seeing furoshiki-inspired values — reuse, versatility, and thoughtful design — translated into a children’s product was a meaningful evolution for our brand, and one we’re excited to continue building on.

Recognition That Still Feels Surreal

We were deeply honored to be named a Kansas City Chamber of Commerce Small Business Superstar for the second year in a row — recognized for both 2025 and 2026.

Being acknowledged by our local business community for work rooted in sustainability, culture, and creativity means more than we can say.

Custom Collaborations Took Center Stage

One of the biggest shifts in 2025 was the growth of our custom furoshiki program, which became our largest revenue stream this year.

We were proud to create custom furoshiki for:

Chicago Cubs
Crown Affair
Hudson Ranch & Vineyards
Apothekary (our second year collaborating, including a custom print)
And many more brands who trusted us to bring thoughtful, reusable design into their customer experience

Seeing furoshiki adapted for so many different brands — while still honoring its roots — has been incredibly rewarding.

Expanding Where You Can Find Us

In 2025, we doubled the number of stockists carrying Keiko Furoshiki. This means more opportunities for customers to discover reusable gift wrap in boutiques, museum shops, and curated retail spaces across the country.

If you found us through a local shop this year — welcome. We’re so glad you’re here.

Our First Time in Print

One of this year’s proudest moments was being featured in Midwest Living magazine — our first-ever print magazine feature. Seeing Keiko Furoshiki in print felt like a milestone, and a reminder that slow, thoughtful businesses still have a place in the spotlight.

Looking Ahead

2025 affirmed what we’ve always believed: tradition can be modern, sustainability can be beautiful, and small businesses can grow with the support of their community.

Thank you for wrapping with us, learning with us, supporting us, and sharing Keiko Furoshiki with others. We can’t wait to show you what’s next in 2026.

With gratitude,
Andrea, Tyler, and Keiko