Iolani Alumni

As one of the first graduates of Olin College, an engineering institution in Massachusetts whose mission is to “prepare future leaders through an innovative engineering education that bridges science and technology, enterprise and society”, Leighton Ige ‘01, son of Iolani Japanese teacher Ige sensei, has always been willing to try something new and different. While at Iolani, he was among the first students to work on the schools website, providing early design and layout options before many even knew a site existed. In college, he started Salubrion, a health and well-being products company that produces and sells his own creation, the Salubrion Seat. Now, he lives and works in Hong Kong managing the manufacturing that pumps out his seats which are sold as far and wide as Japan, Britain, Germany, Canada, Austrailia and in many other places throughout the world.

Salubrion, pronounced sah-LOO-bree-on, is derived from the word “salubrious” which means “to promote health and well-being.” Along with his grandfather, Charles Saiki, Leighton designed and engineered the company’s first product, the Salubrion Seat which is a compact meditation chair ergonomically shaped to increase blood flow to the legs which allows for deeper and longer meditation sessions. Since appearing in holiday catalog for Gaiam, a large American distributer of yoga-related products, sales have been steady and the company is looking to expand their product line with new seating options for the home furniture market.