Toyobo was established in 1882 by Eiichi Shibusawa as a cotton-spinning company in a context of post-Meiji Restoration.

[4] In 2015, Toyobo provided 40% of the yarn for airbags worldwide, and 50% of Japan's food packaging films.

[3] In March 2017, Toyobo introduced Cocomi, a t-shirt that tracks a driver's heartbeats and activates an alarm if somnolence is detected.

[6] In March 2018, Toyobo paid $66 million to settle a case of defective bulletproof vests sold to the US Government between 2001 and 2005.

Toyobo is also engaged in the spinning, weaving, knitting, dyeing, sewing, and the wholesaling and trading of textiles in Japan and internationally.