In February of this year, we were in Tokyo on our buying trip for Fall Winter 17. It was great to be back in Tokyo after nearly a year since our last trip. We visited brands from our current roster and also some new ones.
First up on our list was Nanamica's showroom in Daikanyama. Located just above their Mountain Store.
Nanamica was started in 2003 by head designer Eiichiro Homma. Its aim is to create unique clothes which are a high-level mix of sportswear and fashion. Eiichiro's love of sailing sees an underlining nautical theme run throughout the collection.
The creative team also works very closely with North Face's Purple Label which is North Face's Japan only range. This allows them access to the latest technical fabrics as they become available on the market. Fabrics such as Gore-tex and Pertex feature heavily in the collection.
We are very happy to be working with Nanamica and you can look for their Fall Winter 17 range in-store and online in the later part of the year.
Next up were off to Asakusa-Bashi and the seven-level building that is home to 35 Summer's office and showroom. The company handles sales for Anatomica, Rocky Mountain Feather Bed and Wakouwa Sneakers.
The building really is something with every floor utilised to its maximum potential. There is even a French restaurant!
Located on the ground floor is the Anatomica Tokyo Store. Their range is a classic mix of Ivy League fused with Japanese functionality and French style. It was great to see how the whole collection looked all together in the shop. The attention to detail and quality of the fabrics used are simply amazing. You can shop their SS 17 range in-store now.
One level down from the Anatomica store is the footwear department, where they stock shoes from brands such as Alden and their own Wakouwa sneaker range. Wakouwa was created by one-half of Anatomica, Pierre Fournier. He based the shoes from an iconic Sperry-Topside sneaker from the 30s. The last is a modified Alden one and special arch supports have also been added.
On one of the floors is a workshop. This allows them to not only create customer orders but also quickly make samples for new ideas in house. Allowing the designers free reign with their creativity.
In the showroom. We checked out the new range of Rocky Mountain Feather Bed's vests and jackets. Rocky Mountain was an iconic 1960's outdoors clothing company from Wyoming in the United States. Their signature piece was the leather yoked down vest, created for cowboys. They ceased production sometime in the 1980s. Fast forward a few decades and the company has been resurrected and updated for today's market.
Sometimes life in Tokyo with all its bustling crowds and sensory overload just gets too much.
We will upload the second part of our Buyer's trip soon. Thanks for reading!
