Events YAMATOYA’S SUKUSUKU ES HIGH CHAIR 4 March 2013

How is it that the Japanese can make something so innocuous, like a logo, so freakin’ cute?!?

Yamatoya is pretty unheard of here in Singapore or in other countries, but it’s actually the number one selling children furniture brand in Japan and Korea. Not to mention they’ve been around for over 80 years! 

I was actually surprised to find out about this, since I considering myself quite…. *ahem*… rather on top of children’s brands. I guess, in typical Japanese fashion, they tend to keep all the good stuff in their own country and don’t do much export!

Anyway, Yamatoya make high chairs too and, last year, they launched a new version called Sukusuku ES that looks like this:

Yamatoya Sukusuku ES high chair

 

I just about fainted when I discovered the sold a plain white one. It would fit into our furniture scheme perfectly!!! Our dining table has plain white wood adult chairs, so this would be perfect. Plus, ACKKKKKK how nice do TWO chairs look side-by-side? I’m envisioning that, in a year’s time, I’ll have 2 toddlers sitting in identical-looking chairs, and people won’t even be able to tell they’re in high chairs (since they look so similar to our adult dining chairs) unless they look closely.

The high chairs are made from sustainable and environmentally friendly wood. Plus, the paint and lacquer applied is 100% toxic free.

You know what I like most about them though?

  1. They hold up to 60KG in weight. It means the kids can use them for years (they’re fully adjustable)! Plus, I can sit on it too 😛
  2. They look so good. I’m sick of all the high chairs that look like high chairs. They don’t look sexy in our home. These look like proper wooden furniture, just like the rest of our stuff.
  3. They are really sturdy. I guess being made of 100% wood helps. The kids can’t rattle or shake them, and I don’t fear they will tip.
  4. They wipe clean. SO essential. Food can go everywhere, and one wet wipe is all it takes to clean it since it’s all flat surfaces.
  5. Hunter can climb into it. I like this as it makes him independant. When I tell him it’s food time, he’ll go to the table and climb up and sit down on the chair, all by himself. Handy for me!

 

Fully adjustable seat, so Hunter sits high enough at our dining table

 

It tucks nicely under the table, so he doesn’t slide himself off mid-meal. I also really like how his feet can rest on the panel.

 

By the way, I remove the front T-guard for Hunter’s chair, specifically so he can climb in/out of it. I leave it on for Carter though, since he’s still too little and the T-guard keeps him safely strapped in.

I use their seat cushion for Carter, though I intend to remove it the moment I feel he doesn’t need it, because I way prefer the crisp white wood look. Our cushion is orange, but they usually have a range of about 5 colours/designs that you can choose from.

Seat cushion and T-guard for Carter (as he’s only 6 months), but Hunter sits on the chair au naturale (at 25 months)

 

This makes me LOL because they’re just sitting on high chairs, but look as if they’re on a SUPER EXCITING ROLLERCOASTER RIDE!

 

This is how Hunter climbs up/down the chair by himself. He’s very careful with himself, and so has never tripped or fallen whilst doing so *touch wood*

 

Trying to ‘help’ Carter out of his chair

 

A sweet photo at dinnertime.. they look like they’re having a very serious conversation!

 

I personally reckon they are superb and I’m not looking at any other high chair now. These are so classic, and will grow with my kids. Every single girl friend that has visited has also spotted these chairs and fell in love! They just look good 🙂

I was actually trying to think of something I didn’t like about these chairs.. but I can’t think of any! They work so well with my kids.

You can buy these Yamatoya high chairs here (more info at the link too). I personally adore the classic white, but there are a variety of colours you can choose from.

If you want to touch/look at them in real life, I found out that the Motherhood Exhibition (30 May- 2 June) as well as the Parents World Exhibition (30 August – 1 September) will have them there 🙂

 

Pretty colours

 

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Hi Beverly, I have been eyeing this chair for quite some time and finally i have found a reason to buy it. I just wondered after all these months of use, has the white colour stained or changed colour? Im deciding on the colour. Tks:)

nope the paint holds up really well, it’s still pure white. In fact, my kids keep colouring all over the chairs with crayons/markers, but it all comes off with some Jif 🙂

Thanks Beverly. One more thing, u mentioned that the cushion comes with the chair but I dont see any option to choose the colour at checkout. Any idea?

Hi Jo, because our seat padding designs change ever so often, we do not display the options on our website. Upon delivery of your chair, our delivery guys will present to you all the current seat padding options. You may make your selection then.

Hi Beverly,

I just bought a white sukusuku high chair, exactly the same as yours, at a baby fair today. But after assembling, the table doesn’t fold completely, it stuck at horizontal level behind the chair. Is yours the sams? I just wonder whether it’s default as such

BEHIND the chair? It should be horizontal in front of the chair… did you rotate the whole table 180 degrees before screwing it on? I can’t quite imagine what yours looks like…! But mine just ‘sits’ normally in front of the chair..

Hi June,

I believe that the table was assembled wrongly. The knob with the spring functions as a lock for the table, its purpose is not to hold the table to the chair. The pivoting point of the table should be a bolt, could you check if this solution works? If you require assembly assistance, please drop us an email over at [email protected]. We can arrange for someone to head down and help you out.

Would you have Yamatoya’s sg email address by any chance and if so, could you Inbox me? Their website doesn’t seem to have it. I’d like to check if they’ll ship. I was eyeing the Tripp Trapp but this is a better price range. 🙂

Ahh I just saw this msg and can’t remember if I’ve responded. Have you already contacted them? If not I’ll pass you their email 🙂

Hi.. So far you been using the white colour suku suku highchair… Is the white colour easily stained with food colour? Or will turn yellowish stained easily after some time? I’m quite tempted to get this highchair for my girl. And I so like the classic white colour highchair

I’ve been using my high chair for awhile.. def no staining. It’s not raw wood, but painted white, so I just use a wet wipe afterwards and that’s it. I don’t see it staining over time, which is why I like the white over the coloured versions.

you’re right, it’s so nice how it’s classic and chic! Btw it’s on sale now at MommyGrabs.com and use BEV10OFF code for additional $10 off 😀

Oh you’re set then! The wooden chairs are so much nicer don’t you think? Well worth the extra $$ compared to plastic ones

Love Japanese products, these chairs are very similar to the stokke tripp trapp chairs which you change as your child gets older. Much nicer than the plastic ones 🙂

So true… now that I’ve these, I can’t imagine using those plastic ones. Oops I know that sounded snobby, but wood is just so much nicer!

Here’s a little blurb I pasted from their distributor, it’s very informative so I think it’s better I copy/paste it here than write about it myself 😛

Yamatoya has been around for 89 years, they have been exclusively designing furniture for children for over 80 years. Yamatoya has been producing high chairs for a far longer period than Stokke. Their design has been constantly evolving to suit the market. The reason why most people don’t know about the Yamatoya brand is because they have only recently started exporting their products and it was only introduced to Singapore in 2012. That, on top of Stokke’s strong marketing pushes Yamatoya into the shadows. Yamatoya is the number one children furniture brand in Japan and Korea, endorsed by many Korean celebrities.

The SukusukuES Highchair differs from Stokke’s Tripp Trapp in several ways.

Cost:
SukusukuES is significantly cheaper than the Tripp Trapp. It is sold as a whole, inclusive of the T-gaurd, stoppers, padding and the table the chair retails at $288.00.

While as the Tripp Trapp sells the accessories for the chair separately. The chair alone is $399.00, the baby set (similar to the T-guard) is $99.00, the seat cushion is $99.00 totalling up to $597.00.

Material:
SukusukuES is made of Rubber Wood while Tripp Trapp uses Beech Wood. Beech Wood is much stronger which is why the Tripp Trapp can bear up to 80kg in weight. Rubber Wood is a more economically friendly alternative, though it may not be as strong as Beech Wood, it still offers an incredible sturdiness. Rubber Wood is very commonly used in household furniture.

Yamatoya offers a Beech Wood alternative, which is our MaternaEU Highchair.

Design:
At first glance, both chairs look very similar but the two chairs are structurally very different.

The Tripp Trapp is very angular, from the seats to the legs the chair. This design forces unequal weight distribution. The ‘L’ shaped structure of the chair forces most of the weight to be at the back of the chair. Tripp Trapp is also taller than the SukusukuES, it’s designed for european homes while the SukusukuES is designed for the Asian family.

Because Yamatoya constantly produces new models of their high chair, many design flaw have been corrected over the years to make the chair more consumer friendly. The SukusukuES seat boards are curved inwards (towards the infant), our legs naturally fold inwards so this provides a more comfortable seating position for the child. The seat boards are also curved on the side, creating a stronger grip on the seat plates making them more secure.

The structure of the chair is also more stable. Unlike Tripp Trapp, the SukusukuES Highchair does not have an ‘L’ shape design, so weight is more balanced throughout the chair. The rubber stoppers also create greater stability.

Origins:
The Tripp Trapp is made in China, while Yamatoya’s products are made in Eastern Europe where we have Japanese designers who closely monitor the production process to ensure strict quality controls.

Because Yamatoya uses Indonesian wood, it’s more suitable for the Singapore climate. From what we know, Stokke imports their wood into their China production house.