A gentleman writes with great affection about his hairbrush. It is, he says, a very nice, heavy hairbrush with a teak back and it is in need of new boar bristles, not surprising since he has used it for 20 years. He hopes to find a shop that can do this kind of work, but where?
It would probably be difficult anywhere to find a brush maker/repairer except perhaps in England where such traditions seem to be valued, but then the brush would probably be part of an antique dresser set with mirror, comb, brush and a covered container for stray hairs, all set in silver with a family crest. Japan has its own tradition of brushes but they do not involve boar's bristles set in teak. Yet who would want to be a brush maker today when so many career options are available? Still, I understand how one can be sentimental about old possessions (that "one" is often me) and a lot of my mail (see below) involves the wish to repair some favorite old product.
Japan once was haven for those looking for specialized repairs. In the early postwar years when money was scarce and products limited, repairmen were innovative in making things work or putting them back together. Now we are forced into a throw-away mode by the cost of having repairs made. Our reader, who has lived here as long as his hairbrush, may be surprised to find a satisfactory replacement at some specialty shop in New York or London or Tokyo. Try, for example, Wako, Maruzen or Itoya.