Inaugurated in the 6th year of the Taisho era, kimono specialty store, Yamato Co., Ltd., has launched a French subsidiary and opened a pop-up shop in the Marais district of Paris, where diverse cutting-edge cultures intersect.

While traditionally handling orthodox kimonos, this time in Paris, Yamato is selling two avant-garde brands from their kimono lineup: Y. & SONS and KIMONO by NADESHIKO. Y. & SONS offers men's kimonos born from bold ideas such as suit fabric kimonos, kimono without obi, and outdoor kimonos. KIMONO by NADESHIKO proposes a new dimension of attire with free-thinking designs like kimonos to pair with hoodies or sheer aprons, and knitted yukatas. Both brands are characterized by their innovative appeal, transcending traditional kimonos with a vision to update Japanese kimono culture and emphasize fashionability.

According to Yamato's president, Mr. Takayuki Yajima, this is also a strategic move. "The image of kimonos overseas is either luxurious and splendid or antique. We want to show a world of kimonos that foreigners have never seen before, something that defies those expectations."

Kimono often gets discussed alongside Japan's traditional culture. There's been a growing trend lately to attach high prices to it and sell it abroad. Mr. Yajima resists such trends. "We don't want to shield culture. We aren't living to wear traditional culture. What we wear becomes culture because we choose to wear it."

Yamato aims to lead people naturally from a fashion standpoint to an expanded understanding of culture. Despite being fashion items, one of the strengths of traditional stores is that kimonos can be repaired. While gauging reactions with experimental pop-ups, they also plan to expand the orthodox kimono line and establish a full-fledged store in Paris next year.

Mr. Yajima also opposes the idea of bringing artistic uniqueness to kimonos and selling them at high prices as artworks. "I'm aware of that possibility, but Japanese kimono culture originated from nameless artisans creating for nameless commoners. Our kimonos are folk art in that sense. Our nameless employees engaging in kimono creation with free will are akin to the folk art movement of the Reiwa era."

The scope of the "nameless commoners" is vast. Yajima inherits his grandfather's philosophy of delivering kimonos worth 100,000 yen to 10 people rather than one kimono worth a million yen, making ten people happy. This philosophy reflects in activities like providing attire, dressing, and photography services for those celebrating Shichi-go-san or reaching the age of twenty at welfare facilities. In a Japan where one in seven children lives in poverty and one in eleven has a disability, paying attention to such issues and reflecting them in activities is profoundly meaningful.

Mr. Yajima sets a vision to "create an exciting world with 'kimono'." Young employees, stimulated by these words, are enjoying unknown challenges. Creating a world that is gentle and warm, where no one is left behind as much as possible, is seen as exciting by the next generation. Looking at KIMONO by NADESHIKO, which is bold yet nostalgic and humorous, one can't help but see the hope for the culture of the next generation that will be built from now on.

Original Article in ZERONII by Kitanippon Shimbun:

Top photo: Kimono paired with sheer aprons. KIMONO by NADESHIKO's Spring/Summer 2024 Collection. (Photo by Kaori Nakano at the exhibition of Yamato)