Featuring world-class Tokyo brands!

When it comes to designer brands, we tend to focus on foreign brands. In Japan, there are, of course, the so-called “Gosei” (the three main families) that occupy a corner of the fashion world, such as Comme des Garcons, Yohji Yamamoto, and Issey Miyake, but there are also many other brands that are highly acclaimed around the world. In this issue, we will carefully select and introduce Tokyo brands that are particularly noteworthy and should be kept in mind by men who love fashion.

SACAI

A fashion brand representing Japan established by Chitose Abe in 1999. Under the brand concept of “design that builds on the everyday,” the brand expresses a new classic style that sacai considers by breaking down universal, classic items and adding elegant elements and combinations of materials, items, patterns, and styles.

kolor

A fashion brand founded by Junichi Abe in 2004. After graduating from Bunka Fashion College, he worked for an apparel manufacturer before going independent. The brand has become popular for its designs that fit the mood of the times, focusing on the balance of patterns, materials, and sewing. Abe is highly regarded for his creative use of color and development of innovative materials.

N.HOOLYWOOD

In 2000, Daisuke Ohana started “MISTER HOLLYWOOD” and made his Tokyo Collection debut with the brand ” N. Hollywood” in the spring/summer of 2002. Led by Ohana, who worked at the vintage clothing store “VOICE” and then participated in the launch of the vintage clothing store “go-getter,” this is now one of Japan’s leading street fashion brands. It is also characterized by its active collaboration with other brands.

UNDER COVER

A leading Japanese brand established in 1990 by Jun Takahashi a.k.a. Jonio and Hiroho Ichinose while they were students at Bunka Fashion College. Items that incorporate the atmosphere of the street into the mode have gained a cult following and have even commanded a premium price. John Undercover is the second line.

visvim

A fashion brand started by Hiroki Nakamura in 2000. Bizbim shoes, born from the desire to make good shoes (sneakers) as a shoe brand, are distinctly different from other brands’ shoes and have gained popularity due to their excellent design and functionality. It is known as a brand with a high reputation not only in Japan but also overseas.

yoshio k ubo

This men’s fashion brand was established by Yoshio Kubo in 2004. He became independent after working on haute couture for four years as an assistant designer under Robert Dens in New York. Based on the belief that “I want to pursue patterns and details that have never been seen before,” the brand develops comfortable wear for everyday wear while making full use of haute couture techniques.

JOHN LAWRENCE S ULLIVAN

A fashion brand established by Araki Yanagawa in 2003. The brand specializes in military and sports styles based on tailored techniques. Mr. Yanagawa himself has a unique background as a professional boxer before getting involved in fashion. The brand name is derived from the legendary heavyweight professional boxer ” John Lawrence Sullivan.

White Mountaineering

A fashion brand established by Yosuke Aizawa in 2006. The concept is “all clothing worn outdoors in the field,” and the brand maintains an attitude of manufacturing that is not beholden to the market by integrating the three elements of design, practicality, and technology into a single form.

TAKAHIROMIYASHITATheSoloist.

This fashion brand was established in 2010 by Takahiro Miyashita, who left NUMBER(N)INE after its dissolution. The Solo Ist.” in the brand name is a wish for each individual involved in the clothing industry to have a solitary spirit as a “soloist,” and at the same time, to be able to express his or her own personal feelings and thoughts as a person who has returned to the world of clothing. It is also an expression of his determination to return to the world of clothing. Mr. Miyashita is also known as a person who did not attend fashion school, but learned buying and making clothes while working at a select store.

m’s braque

This fashion brand was established by Takahiro Matsushita in 2001. The concept is “real clothing between mode and classic. The brand travels around Europe, using vintage and dead stock items that are too precious to reproduce in the modern world, as well as design-oriented materials and accessories, and expressing them through unique pattern-making. The brand is based on tailoring, but at the same time, it has a unique ” cutting edge ” with a glossy and colorful look.

ts(s)

A Japanese men’s fashion brand established in 2009 by Takuji Suzuki, who has a career as a stylist, editor, and creative director for fashion magazines. The lineup is based on a unique traditional style interpreted in a modern way, while incorporating work, military, sports, and other styles. The brand aims to achieve its own balance and stance of ” making things that don’t seem to exist ” and ” unexpectedness that doesn’t go too far.

MIHARAYASUHIRO

Yasuhiro Mihara started this fashion brand in 1996 as a shoe manufacturer. He has been making shoes on his own since he was a student at Tama Art University, and his shoes and playful clothes that shine with his attention to design and materials have attracted attention both in Japan and abroad.

GANRYU

Fumito Maruryu, known as the youngest designer at Comme des Garcons, started this fashion brand in 2008 within Comme des Garcons. After building a career as a patterner at Junya Watanabe Comme des Garcons under Junya Watanabe, he started his own eponymous brand GANRYU within the company.

The remaining 10 brands are on the next page!