Heir to US$2b Japanese knitting empire moving into car parts

Tokyo

BUILDING a machine to construct high-end Prada sweaters was just the start.

Now Mitsuhiro Shima, who took over his dad's knitting-machine firm three months ago, is setting his sights on - of all places - the car industry. The 56-year-old president of Shima Seiki Manufacturing Ltd is in talks with car parts makers to use its technology to develop lighter, non-steel components, and plans to sign a deal next fiscal year.

It's the latest evolution of the company founded in 1962 by Masahiro Shima, a prodigy who made a series of inventions before he turned 20. Back then, Shima Seiki developed machines for making work gloves.

More than half a century later, it's one of the top global suppliers of advanced knitting machines, which create seamless and other clothing for brands from Prada and Giorg…