ikasa to triple rental spots with Series B funding and media partnership

Nature Innovation Group, operator of the umbrella-sharing service ikasa, announced last week that it has raised 350 million yen in a Series B funding round. The impact investment from Nippon Television Holdings will fuel the expansion of its rental network and support its mission to eliminate disposable umbrella waste in Japan.

Japan consumes an estimated 80 million disposable vinyl umbrellas annually, the highest rate in the world, creating significant resource waste and unnecessary CO2 emissions. ikasa was launched in 2018 to tackle this issue by providing a convenient alternative. The service now has over 800,000 registered users and more than 2,000 rental spots, often established in partnership with railway companies and local governments.

The new funding is an impact investment from Nippon TV’s “SOCIAL IMPACT Lab,” which aims to support businesses that balance economic viability with social and environmental benefits. Nippon TV had previously partnered with ikasa for its “Good For the Planet Week” as part of the “2030 Zero Disposable Umbrella Project.”

With this investment, Nature Innovation Group will begin formally measuring and managing its environmental impact. Key metrics include the amount of CO2 emissions reduced and the reduction in new resource consumption. The company also aims to measure its success in fostering “a sense of unease about disposable umbrellas” to shift public perception.

The funds will be used to more than triple the number of ikasa rental spots over the next three years, with a focus on the Kanto and Kansai regions, and to hire new staff. The two companies also plan to develop joint campaigns, such as advertising on the shared umbrellas, to further promote the service.