Sunday, April 19, 2009

Urban Wear in Japan

Today went to Harajuku again with Travis. Only this time it was for guys clothes. Basically we hit up every big urban brand and a bunch of the shoe stores in between.

First we went to Supreme (a NY based designer), so Travis could pick up a pair of shoes that were just released today. The stuff at Supreme sells for twice the price that you would pay in the states. And people still buy it! Travis said the shoes he bought were selling for $200 online.

Next we went to Atmos again. Atmos is really cute because they make a lot of guys stuff with Hello Kitty. Really really cute stuff. Its still kind of exclusive, like Travis said, you don't really see people wearing it, even on Fairfax where guys are really into their brands. They sell girls stuff too, but I was determined not to get anything. Lol almost caved in, but today is all about the presents. Not a day to buy things for myself.

Went to a sneaker store called Kicks Factory or something like that. The whole place was guys shoes. There are a lot of these types of stores, but the shoes that this one were even more expensive than at other ones I've seen. There was a small selection of shoes that were even in a glass case. If you think it is crazy to pay hundreds for shoes, those behind the glass were $1,000+. So ridiculous.

Billionaire Boys Club (Pharell's brand) has a store there too. To get to the clothes you have to step up and walk along this platform that is lit by a neon light. The wall around the platform is rounded, so it feels like you are walking through a tunnel in a spaceship. On the left hand side, in a neon glass writing it said something like "wealth is of the heart and spirt not of the wallet." It was a pretty sick design. Wish I could have taken a picture. Although I don't know anything about these brands, Travis said that Billionaire Boys Club is not really popular at all.

Our last stop was Stussy Tokyo. Two floors, really busy. They have a lot of Hawaii inspired stuff right now. Aloha flowers, shirts with surfers. One shirt had a picture of Bob Marley wearing a Stussy shirt and said "one world, one love." A slogan on a lot of their shirts read "increase the peace." The shirts there started at $50, the cheapest of all the stores, but think that is still substantially more than you would pay in the US.

Its really crazy how much people are willing to drop for these clothes. Like when shirts are $60 and jackets start at $150 and there's still a demand for it. Definitely not as many people wear urban stuff as compared to SF and LA, but there is a reason these stores are here. First there's a lot of money in Japan and the people who are into it are very brand conscious and I would argue that they are also very loyal. Guys here definitely pay more for their shoes and clothes. They are both high maintenance and have expensive taste.

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