Fukuoka's LED Neon Specialist 'neoneon' Announces Official Collaboration with Miyazaki's Authentic Shochu 'Sawayaka Obisugi', Offering 3 Original Label Bottles to 50 Customers

Three original label bottles (Left: Black x Yellow / Center: White / Right: Black x Silver)

A full label design featuring the logos of both companies.

'neoneon', an LED neon sign specialty store from Fukuoka (operated by PURPLE MAX Inc.), has produced an official collaboration bottle with Inoue Shuzo Co., Ltd. (Nichinan City, Miyazaki Prefecture), a historic brewery founded in 1894, for their authentic sweet potato shochu 'Sawayaka Obisugi'.

In this collaboration, while paying respect to the traditional brushwork appearance of Inoue Shuzo's representative brand 'Sawayaka Obisugi', the regionality of Nichinan, Miyazaki, and its dignity as a shochu label, neoneon combined it with their expertise in LED neon luminescence, nighttime store environments, and sign culture, reconstructing it into three types of original labels.

The completed collaboration bottles will be given as a limited gift to 50 individuals, targeting customers who have purchased LED neon signs from neoneon, or partners who have signed official distribution agency contracts.

A Meeting of Those Who Love Innovation

Inoue Shuzo Co., Ltd., a historic brewery in Nichinan City, Miyazaki Prefecture, founded in 1894.

Their representative brand, 'Sawayaka Obisugi', was launched in 1983 as Japan's first 100% vacuum-distilled sweet potato shochu.

It is a sweet potato shochu with a refreshing taste, brewed with 'Yohara Yusui', famous water from Miyazaki. Its refreshing and easy-to-drink flavor, distinct from the strong image of traditional sweet potato shochu, has been loved for many years as one of the representative shochus of Nichinan, Miyazaki.

On the other hand, neoneon is a specialty store based in Fukuoka that plans, designs, and manufactures LED neon signs.

Dedicated to complete in-house manufacturing without relying on domestic or overseas outsourcing, they have supported spatial designs for stores, brands, events, artists, and creators while valuing the quality and expressive power of 'MADE IN JAPAN'.

Shochu and neon. At first glance, they seem to be in different realms, but they shared commonalities.

Those are an obsession with materials, pride in the region, and an attitude toward craftsmanship that seeks to transcend existing common sense.

Background of the Collaboration

The trigger for this project was that neoneon's representative was a private consumer of 'Obisugi'.

As he drank it regularly and researched its background, he was strongly drawn to the history of Inoue Shuzo, the innovation that gave birth to 'Sawayaka Obisugi' in 1983, and their attitude toward brewing rooted in the Nichinan, Miyazaki region.

In particular, the fact that 1983, the year Obisugi was born, was also the birth year of neoneon's representative made this collaboration even more special.

Not just a simple novelty item, and not just a label change, they wanted to create a bottle that layered respect for the 'Obisugi' brand with neoneon's philosophy of craftsmanship.

With that desire, they requested a collaboration with Inoue Shuzo, and with the confirmation of both parties, it was produced as an official collaboration bottle.

About the 3 Types of Original Labels

White Label — A bottle that aligns with the traditional Obisugi label, layered with neoneon's light.

The collaboration bottle produced this time will be deployed in three types of original labels.

neoneon's design team combined the luminescence of LED neon while paying respect to the power of the brushwork, the margins, the presence of vertical typesetting, and the regionality of Nichinan, Miyazaki, possessed by the official 'Obisugi' label.

The brushwork of 'Obisugi' is reconstructed through outlines and light expressions reminiscent of neon signs. While retaining the appearance of a traditional shochu label, it has been arranged into a modern visual expression typical of neoneon.

◯ White Label

A soft and elegant design that aligns with the appearance of Inoue Shuzo's traditional label. A bottle that makes you feel the inherent freshness of Obisugi and the nature of Nichinan, Miyazaki.

◯ Black Label / Yellow Glow

A design incorporating a warm luminescence that can be said to be the royal road of neon signs. A bottle that exerts a strong presence even when placed on the counter of a nighttime store space, bar, or restaurant.

◯ Black Label / Silver Glow

A modern and sophisticated design with a cool, urban impression. A bottle that layers neoneon's sharp expression of light onto the world of traditional shochu.

Furthermore, text elements such as '20 degrees', 'Specialty of Nichinan, Miyazaki', 'Sawayaka', and 'Authentic Shochu' have also been redesigned down to the details to match the worldview of the entire label.

It's not just a simple logo replacement, but a full label design infused with neoneon's design philosophy in every aspect: text, margins, light, and placement.

Providing a 'Bottle That Sparks Conversation' in Store Spaces

neoneon's representative's favorite way to drink is mixed with soda. The refreshing taste shines in the neon night.

LED neon signs are utilized as store decorations that greatly influence the impression of a space in restaurants, bars, hotels, salons, and apparel shops.

This time's