The survival of the Japanese auto industry requires an honest, candid relationship between Toyota and its suppliers--this was the defining message behind speeches given by President Koji Sato and Incoming President Kenta Kon addressing suppliers.
The 2026 Toyota Supply Partners Convention, held on March 25 at Toyota Arena Tokyo (Koto City, Tokyo), brought together more than 700 leaders from suppliers around the world.
This was also the first time President Koji Sato and Incoming President Kenta Kon appeared together in front of stakeholders since the press conference on Toyota’s formation change in February.
The two expressed gratitude for the long-standing relationship between Toyota and its suppliers along with Toyota’s resolve to survive in an increasingly challenging auto industry.
Here, we present the speeches delivered by President Sato and Incoming President Kon.
(The titles used in this article are those held at the time of the Supply Partners Convention.)
Diversity as the driving force behind making ever-better cars
President Sato
Thank you very much for joining us today at the Toyota Supply Partners Convention.
And let me welcome you all to Toyota Arena Tokyo!
The concept for this arena is “Discovering potential together.” It opened last year as a platform that empowers diverse initiatives, from sports to music and mobility.
We hope this space will energize and accelerate our collective efforts.
Today, we are honored to be joined by 733 representatives from 484 partner companies.
Gathered under this one roof is a diverse group of colleagues from around the globe, from parts manufacturers to those handling equipment, logistics, and construction, as well as partners in sectors such as semiconductors and materials.
I believe this diversity is the true driving force enabling us to make ever-better cars.
Today, I would like to use this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to the future and take a new step forward together, so that we can transform our diversity into potential.
Looking back over the past year, our business environment continued to grow more challenging, beginning with the issues around U.S. tariffs.
Despite that, we have continued to make steady progress on our future-focused initiatives.
For example, the new RAV4, our first step in delivering safe and secure SDVs.
Woven City, which celebrated its official launch this past autumn.
The Corolla Concept, combining technologies that embody our multi-pathway ethos.
Through these and other projects, we have been working step by step to bring our mobility company vision to life.
We also exhibited at the Japan Mobility Show, where Chairman Toyoda’s leadership brought the Toyota Group together as one, showcasing the visions of our five brands through new products.
We are truly grateful for all of your support.
The past year was also underpinned by your efforts on the production front.
Make ever-better cars—and deliver them to customers.
All of you have turned these words into action, responding flexibly to challenges including natural disasters, production fluctuations, and other production issues.
Alongside the efforts being made within each company, suppliers also worked diligently together to keep production moving.
One supplier, upon learning that another company with no business relationship was struggling with a broken mold, immediately rushed to help in order to prevent production downtime.
I believe it is these individual efforts and acts of teamwork in the genba of our more than 60,000 suppliers that enabled us to make and deliver 9.95 million vehicles to our customers last year.
We sincerely thank you for your efforts.