The apparel industry started to grow
notably in Japan in the 1960s. In the midst of a surge in buying,
and department stores as well as supermarkets rushed to meet
demand for ready-to-wear clothing by expanding floorspace for
clothes. Ready-to-wear clothing eventually accounted for 90%
of all of the clothing classifications, and women's clothing
became the mainstream of fashion merchandise. Industry organizations
sponsored a variety of fairs such as Tokyo Fashion Week beginning
in 1975, to generate more demand for new clothes. During this
period, the "Ivy Look" became popular and big-name
brand clothing received greater attention.
The apparel industry reached maturity In the 1980s so-called
"DC (designers and characters) brand" thrived, and
clothing designed by a number of young and energetic Japanese
designers became very popular. On the back of the yen's appreciation
against the dollar after the Plaza Accord in 1985, however,
a number of foreign brands made inroads into the Japanese market,
and Japanese designers are being challenged by the big names
from overseas.
Luxury brands
It is well known that the Japanese consumers are fond of luxury
brands. Despite the prolonged economic slump, sales of major
foreign luxury brands in Japan have been showing strong growth
in recent years. Louis Vuitton, for example, saw its sales in
Japan exceed well over ¥100 billion in 2002. Sales of fashion
and leather goods in the Japanese market accounted for 33% of
Louis Vuitton's total sales worldwide. Luxury brands with sales
of over ¥10 billion are called "super brands,"
which include Hermes, Chanel, Cartier and Gucci.(*1)
Japanese Designers in the World
It was in the 1970s that influential Japanese designers began
to appear in the world of fashion. Kenzo made his debut in the
Paris collection in 1970 and Issey Miyake in 1973. Japanese
sensitivity towards clothing had a strong impact on the international
arena. In 1981, Rei Kawakubo (designer of Comme des Garçons)
and Yohji Yamamoto created a sensational concept "worn-out
look" and "clothing based in black." Comme des
Garçons is one of Japan's top brands and has set the
pace of the avant-garde trend.
In 1985, the bi-annual Tokyo Collection was inaugurated
and expanded its scale until the late 1980s when many of the
prominent designers left for abroad. Today, however, the collection
is being brought back to life by the new trends in the streets.
Leaders of street fashion, Jun Takahashi (designer of Under
Cover) and Masahiro Nakagawa (designer of Lica) are now leading
the Tokyo Collection.(*2)
Japanese designers are coming up with innovative concepts
and are daring enough to challenge them. Designers such as Kohji
Tatsuno have revived the haute couture maison, Madame Alix Gres,
top couturier of Paris in the 1930s. Yohji Yamamoto's Y-3 collaboration
with Adidas as well as Makiko Minagawa's tech-ethnic HaaT label
are receiving huge orders in New York stores.
|
