Nozomu Matsumoto

Nozomu Matsumoto was a Japanese businessman and inventor who founded Pioneer Corporation. He was born in Kobe, Japan in 1905, the son of a Christian missionary. In 1936, he founded the Fukuin Shokai Denki Seisakusho company in Osaka, whose name roughly translates to "Blessed Sound Electric Company" or "Gospel Electric Company", owing to Matsumoto's Christian faith and belief that his electronic products could help in missionary works. In 1937 he created the A-8 speaker, which he christened 'Pioneer'. Matsumoto relocated to Tokyo in 1938 and started a small factory that repaired radios and speakers. After World War II, the company expanded rapidly.