references but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations . please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations . may 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message sunstar group sunstar key people hiroo kaneda yoshihiro kaneda website www.sunstar.com consumer goods business sunstar suisse s.a. founded 2002 2002 headquarters route de pallatex 15 1163 etoy switzerland website www.sunstar.com engineering business sunstar singapore pte. ltd. founded 2005 2005 headquarters 3 fusionopolis link 02 07 nexus one north 138543 singapore website www.sunstar.com sunstar is a japanese global oral care health & beauty as well as chemicals and motorcycle parts conglomerate with affiliates in 27 countries . its main businesses are the development manufacturing and sale of oral care products 1 2 toothpastes toothbrushes and dental rinses as well as of chemicals 3 4 building materials and automotive and motorcycle parts sprockets and braking disks . in recent years it has been expanding into the area of cosmetics and health food . 5 6 7 8 sunstar s founder kunio kaneda ja established the kaneda keitai shokai company in osaka japan in 1932 as a seller of rubber glue for bicycles . the introduction of metal tubes for packaging of the rubber glue and later also toothpastes formed the basis for the early success of the business . the company since has developed into the leading oral care business in japan with a significant international presence . 9 the engineering business also has a leading position for several of its products in japan and other markets . group sales exceeded one billion united states dollars for the first time in the 1990s and are now at the level of 1.4 billion us dollars per year . after having been listed on the osaka securities exchange since 1961 sunstar undertook a management and employee buyout of all shares in 2007 . 10 the ownership of sunstar japan and the other group companies of the consumer goods business was transferred to switzerland and the engineering business to singapore in an effort to accelerate globalization . contents 1 history 2 main business units and brands 3 group companies 3.1 asia 3.2 europe 3.3 north and south america 4 references 5 external links history edit kunio kaneda founded kaneda keitei shokai kaneda brother s company in 1932 and began the manufacture and sale of rubber glue for bicycles . applying the manufacturing technology used in pouring rubber glue into metal tube containers the company expanded by packaging toothpaste into metal tube containers in 1946 when mainstream dentifrices were still in powder form . this was the company s first toothpaste which later formed its core business . this business grew and led to sunstar s oral care and health & beauty businesses which today emphasize the promotion of oral and whole body health . the company s name sunstar was derived from the idea of tooth brushing in the morning at sunrise and again at night under starlight . meanwhile the businesses of rubber glue and parts for bicycles developed into a synthetic chemical adhesive and sealant business for automobile production and construction applications as well as for motorcycle disc parts such as sprockets and brakes namely its vehicle equipment division . sunstar continues to promote its further development of businesses in these four fields after experiencing the following historical milestones 1933 founder kunio kaneda established the kaneda brother s company in osaka 1946 started production of metal tubes and founded kaneda light metal tube industries 1946 started developing and manufacturing its first toothpaste 1946 engaged in production of bicycle parts 1948 started collaboration with shionogi to sell medical toothpaste 1950 four predecessor companies merged to establish sunstar inc. 1952 started production of toothbrushes 1953 formation of sunstar engineering co. ltd. 1955 formation of sunstar group to organize sales dealerships in japan 1958 current main japanese plant and laboratories completed in takatsuki osaka 1961 listed on osaka securities exchange 1977 establishment of sunstar foundation 1988 acquisition of us dental tooth brush manufacturer j.o. butler inc. 2007 started transfer of head office functions to switzerland and privatized ownership by management and employee share buyout delisted from osaka securities exchange 2009 completed and set up headquarters building in switzerland sunstar suisse s.a. etoy 2011 acquired interbros gmbh german toothbrush and interdental brush manufacturer 2011 acquired degradable solutions ag swiss bonegraft manufacturer main business units and brands edit oral care g u m 1 butler ora2 2 guidor health & beauty equitance 5 6 sunstar tonic 7 kenkodojo 8 adhesives sealants chemicals penguinseal 3 star penguin vehicle safety braking sunstar penguinseal ibike 4 group companies edit asia edit sunstar singapore pte. ltd. singapore sunstar inc. osaka japan sunstar marketing inc. osaka japan sunstar engineering inc. osaka japan sunstar guangzhou ltd. guangzhou china sunstar co. ltd. shanghai china maple marketing ltd. hong kong china starlecs inc. osaka japan europe edit sunstar s.a. etoy switzerland sunstar suisse s.a. etoy switzerland sunstar europe s.a. etoy switzerland degradable solutions ag schlieren switzerland sunstar france s.a.s. levallois perret france sunstar italiana s.r.l. saronno italy sunstar engineering italy s.r.l. linarte italy sunstar iberia s.l.u. barcelona spain sunstar sverige ab m lndal sweden sunstar deutschland gmbh sch nau germany sunstar interbros gmbh sch nau germany north and south america edit sunstar engineering americas inc. ohio usa sunstar americas inc. chicago usa sunstar americas m xico s. de r.l. de c.v. huixquilucan estado de mexico sunstar pharmaceutical inc. elgin il references edit a b goldie maria perno . oral hygiene care during orthodontic therapy . dentistry iq . retrieved 12 march 2015 . a b kawaii . retrieved 12 march 2015 . a b cunningham justin . single part foam sealant helps produce a better gasket . materials for engineering . retrieved 16 march 2015 . a b sunstar ibike trasforma tutte le bici da normali a pedalata assistita . omnimoto . retrieved 16 march 2015 . a b neale april . pigmentation and premature aging woes new japanese line has you covered . monsters & critics . retrieved 13 march 2015 . a b hosokawa kotaro . sunstar to sell mail order cosmetics abroad . retrieved 13 march 2015 . a b . retrieved 13 march 2015 . a b . retrieved 16 march 2015 . mazzoleni m 2006 . effective management practice and theory of a successful company . the case of sunstar . international journal of business and information . 3 1729 9322 . mazzoleni m. management realizzato prassi e teorie di un azienda di successo . il caso sunstar . isbn 9788846470300 . external links edit sunstar global site http www.sunstar.com sunstar engineering site http www.sunstar engineering.com sunstar americas site http www.gumbrand.com sunstar europe site http www.sunstargum.com sunstar foundation http www.sunstar foundation.org retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title sunstar group & oldid 731038570 categories chemical companies of japancompanies established in 1932companies based in osaka prefecturemultinational companies headquartered in japanpersonal care companiesdental companies1932 establishments in japanmidori kaijapanese brandshidden categories articles lacking in text citations from may 2015all articles lacking in text citationsinterlanguage link template link number navigation menu personal tools not logged intalkcontributionscreate accountlog in namespaces article talk variants views read edit view history more search navigation main pagecontentsfeatured contentcurrent eventsrandom articledonate to wikipediawikipedia store interaction helpabout wikipediacommunity portalrecent changescontact page tools what links hererelated changesupload filespecial pagespermanent 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