Kuraray was founded in 1926 with the aim of marketing synthetic rayon, which was a leading technology at the time. After World War II, in 1950, Kuraray were the first in the world to market polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fibre, under the brand name KURALON™. It was the first synthetic fibre invented in Japan, and led the initial phase of the Japanese synthetic fibre industry.

Since then, Kurary has grown from a fibre manufacturer to a chemical company through their proprietary technologies in the field of high-performance fibres, resins and chemicals, promoted by “technology development and production from raw materials”. As a “specialised chemical company” dedicated to originality, Kurary has created many activities and products that have the best market shares in the world, especially in the vinyl acetate business.