Completely separate companies, both called Yamaha. One was spun off from the other, but I don't think there was ever a time when the same company sold both. (Basically, the musical instrument company was redirected to making war materiel during WWII. After the war, they didn't want to just throw away all of their new industrial capacity so they spun off a company to make use of all their new equipment and expertise and then went back to making instruments.)
Although the Yamaha that makes music and audio products is the same Yamaha that makes golf clubs (https://global.golf.yamaha.com/en/) and industrial equipment (https://www.yamahafinetech.co.jp/en/).
The OG Yamaha produced a motorcycle in 1954, the YA-1. That success then led to the spin off.
(fun fact: the motorcycle Triumph and the undergarment Triumph are two entirely different companies that just happen to share the same name)
A motorcycle named Norton Commander also exists, and Nokia* sold winter bicycle tires with studs on them so they would grip better on ice and snow.
Not sure about the meaning of your asterisk, but the Nokian Tyres corporation is not related to Nokia the telecoms co, other than being founded in the same town.
Nokia did manufacture rubber boots though, before they spun off the footwear division in 1990 and went all in on electronics.
The company's history page says they were part of the merger in 1967 that created "Big Nokia": https://company.nokiantyres.com/about-us/history/#:~:text=19...
This changed in 1988 with the formation of an LLC, in 1995 they went public and in 2003 shares still held by the parent company were sold off to Bridgestone.
Nokian studded tires for bicycles are (were?) the best! Rode many-many kilometers at winter with them!
Triumph is also a garment brand? Never heard of it.
I had no idea you've never heard of it. Thanks for keeping us informed.
>I had no idea you've never heard of it. Thanks for keeping us informed.
I see.
In that case, you'll appreciate the fact that the Three Musketeers chocolate bar bears no relationship to Alexander Dumas, the author of the famed book series featuring D'Artagnan and three musketeers.
You might also be interested to learn that Zenit launch vehicles are not made by the organization that produces Zenit optics and cameras.
Most crucially, Lucky grocery store chain in California turns out to be completely different from the Korean Lucky chemical products and electronics conglomerate (known as "Lucky GoldStar" after merging its chem and electronics wings, and, currently, "LG").
The more you know!
It’s also a Wonder Dog, a Canadian power trio not featuring Neal Peart, and a moment when we shouldn’t evacuate the Death Star.
> Wonder Dog
I think you meant Insult Comic Dog.
I guess we were too good at Triumphing…
I didn't realize when I was a kid that the Yamaha music company came first.
I remember being confused when looking at high end saxophones that one was made by an old French company (that made sense, France makes many fine luxury goods including instruments) and the other was (in my mind) made by a motorcycle company. How could a motorcycle company possibly have compiled the expertise to make high end musical instruments when most musical instrument companies were chasing the low end of the market at the time?
But Yamaha music (1887) was started only 2 years after Selmer (1885). They got their start making reed organs. Reed organs (1) are technical, (2) make sound with reeds, and (3) are luxury items. So their expertise in sax (a reed instrument) and synthesizers (technical keyboard instruments) makes a ton of sense.
Day Start proekror proom
Same company
They may have “different legal entities” but it’s the same.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamaha_Corporation
Yeah, that's one of them. Here's the other:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamaha_Motor_Company
It even says in your link "The former motorcycle division was established in 1955 as Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd., which started as an affiliated company but has been spun-off as its own independent company. "