I became aware of genderless proposals.

I feel that "Ships JetBlue" has been changing for the past few seasons. I feel like the items in the store are becoming a bit more mature.

northern fieldsI am not conscious of changing the direction of the store at all. We believe that the core of a store should not waver, so we have been trying to maintain our concept and take a unique approach that is different from that of our parent company, Ships. However, the way we find and buy brands may have changed compared to the past. Nowadays, we have access to real-time information from all over the world, and we have to adapt to that.

I will ask you about your buying method later, but you currently have two buyers including Mr. Kitabatake, right? What is the role of the two of you?

northern fieldsI am the MD buyer, which means that I decide on the season's theme and concept, and I steer the store from one season to the next. I also play a central role in buying imported brands. The other buyer is Tanaka, who mainly travels around Japan buying domestic brands and planning special order items.

What kind of store are you two trying to create now?

northern fieldsAs I mentioned earlier, while inheriting the DNA of "SHIPS," "SHIPS JET BLUE" was started in an attempt to go its own way. The concept of the store was to pursue street and mode styles and present the culture behind them to our customers. This has never changed. What has changed is that we have become more conscious of offering genderless proposals.

These are keywords that we have been hearing a lot about in the fashion scene over the past few years.

northern fieldsSHIPS JET BLUE" used to be attached to a "SHIPS" store, but last spring we opened a new store called "SHIPS BLU STORE. This is a combined store of the women's casual line "Khaju" and "Ships JetBlue," where we propose what we both want to express in our stores, while at the same time defining the commonalities between the two as "genderless. The commonality between the two is "genderless," a term that encapsulates the two shops' mutual desire to express themselves. In particular, "Ships Blue Store Fab NEWoMan Shinjuku" is a concept store that more concretely expresses the world view we envision.

You are developing unisex items through the filter of "Ships JetBlue" and "Caje", is that right?

northern fieldsI think that's right. In the past few years, I feel that the image of fashion as portrayed by women and that portrayed by men have been getting closer. In that sense, I think the range of proposals we can offer has expanded. Ships Blue Store is a store that embodies this idea. We have items that look cool when worn by men and cute when worn by women. We have items that look cool when worn by men and cute when worn by women.

It is not an easy task to direct a company with a focus on men's fashion while also taking women's fashion into consideration, is it?

northern fieldsOf course you are right. However, I became a buyer about 10 years ago, and in between, I was a women's buyer for "Ships" for about two years. So I didn't start completely from scratch.

I see.

northern fieldsEven within the same fashion category, there is a definite difference in the waves of trends between men's and women's wear. Women's trends move more rapidly than men's trends, and just when I thought I had successfully caught a wave, it would immediately calm down and a new wave would come in. Even if it was only for two years, it was a great asset for me to have such an experience. Naturally, it has also come in handy in the direction of "Ships Blue Store.

We delve into the fascination of clothing through music, movies, and other culture.

I would like to know more about yourself, Mr. Kitabatake.

northern fieldsMy fundamental desire is to wear basic American clothes. I have always been familiar with American movies such as "Top Gun" and "Back to the Future," so I naturally began to admire the clothes that appeared in those movies. That is why I joined "Ships," but at the time, the store was full of American-made clothes (laughs). I was happy with that, but I wanted to see more different clothes, and I became interested in European brands as well. That is how I became attracted to the world of mode clothes made by designers such as Martin Margiela, Raf Simons, and Helmut Lang.

What are your cultural influences?

northern fieldsI think movies have had a big influence on me. As I mentioned, I have been familiar with American popular movies since I was a child, and now I often watch low-budget independent films as well.

What are some of the interesting movies you have seen recently?

northern fieldsI saw it on DVD. It was a good French film from the 90s called "Hatred". I liked that it was set in an unsafe neighborhood in France and realistically depicted the street culture that existed there. It was a cool movie in general.

Kitabatake:I also enjoyed a wonderful Irish film called "ONCE On a Street Corner in Dublin". It was released in 2007 and is about street musicians. I was also attracted by the fact that it was made on a very low budget. I have been listening to the soundtrack of this film a lot recently, and I like the song "When your mind's made up" that is included in it.

Do you find that your exposure to this kind of culture influences the direction of your store?

northern fieldsI think that the culture behind the clothes is a very important factor in making them more attractive. In order to decipher this, I think it is essential for those involved in the fashion industry to be exposed to movies and music. We also hold events such as photo exhibitions and pop-ups in our stores to help customers better understand the world of "SHIPS JET BLUE.

Mr. Kitabatake's unique buying style.

When you are actually buying, do you place importance on the culture of the brand?

northern fieldsOf course. What kind of background does the designer have, what kind of culture does he or she like, and what kind of activities has he or she been involved in? These details are important factors in making a decision to deal with the brand. Based on these factors, we will judge whether or not the brand will fit in the store.

When I look at the recent imported items at "SHIPS JET BLUE", I feel that you are developing a unique brand that cannot be found at other stores, while keeping a close eye on trends. Are you conscious of the "one-of-a-kind" aspect?

northern fieldsYes, I am aware of that. We want to provide our customers with clothes they have never seen before. Of course we go to big exhibitions where buyers from other stores go, but we also try to contact as many brands as possible that we find through our own channels.

What exactly do you mean by "unique routes"?

northern fieldsA very modern approach, but recently we have seen an increase in the number of cases where people make contact with brands they have found through SNS or through information they have received from overseas brand staff. There are many major-oriented minor brands that create clothes with a theme for each season, and independent brands that consistently release only T-shirts.

That's what you mentioned at the beginning, the change in the way you find and buy brands.

northern fieldsI think that's right. However, it can happen that a brand that you think is good at first glance suddenly changes the direction of its creation, so the way you communicate with the brand and the way you make purchases are very important.

What do you mean?

northern fieldsThe first impression is a good one, so it's not necessarily a positive thing for the brand to suddenly buy a bunch of models. You never know if you will be able to continue creating at a higher level in the following season. If the quality declines, the prestige of the brand will also decline proportionally. In order to prevent this from happening, we focus our purchases on the good parts of the brand, and ask the designer what he or she is thinking about for the next season and beyond. I try to communicate with the designers by asking them what they are thinking about the next season and beyond.

In a sense, you are buying the brand as if you are watching it grow.

northern fieldsI think that may be true, depending on how you look at it. We would like to have as long a relationship with the brand as possible, and by communicating with the brand with that kind of spirit, the other side will have a good impression of us. This leads to the delivery of quality items to our customers.

This is a hot item that will be available at Ships JetBlue this season.

Lastly, I would like to touch on the 2016 FW season.

northern fieldsAs I mentioned earlier, our direction is based on the theme of "genderless. Our products are mainly items that can be worn by both men and women, while keeping up with the current trends.

Are there any items or brands that symbolize this season?

northern fieldsI would like you to pay attention to "ISIDORO FRANCISCO". We only carry one outerwear item, but it is a brand with a nice appearance and atmosphere. The brand is based in New York, and it has the feel of a group of local guys making things in a carefree manner, and they do it loosely in a good sense. When I actually went to see the items, they were very friendly and asked me if I wanted to embroider "BOYS OF TOKYO" instead of "BOYS OF NEW YORK" on the back of the items. They would talk to me in a friendly manner.

How did you find this brand?

northern fieldsIt's an Instagram. There is a brand called "dartbag" that is originally sold at "Ships JetBlue," and a model girl who has a connection with the brand uploaded a photo of herself wearing this item by "Isidro Francisco.

Women wearing men's clothes. That's exactly the worldview you wanted to express this season at SHIPS JetBlue, wasn't it?

northern fieldsI think that's right. Even though they are men's clothes, when girls wear them, they look very sophisticated. I was attracted to the ambiguous balance in a good sense, and I also thought that the design, which combines the best of ska-jeans and sports jackets, would fit in with the current street scene. I immediately contacted the brand and went to meet the designer.

Are there any other styles you would like to express?

northern fieldsThis season, we are also focusing on leather jackets. We have made a special order for the British brand "JAMES GROSS," and we are also offering "One Star" by "Schott" as an in-line line item. We also make original products.

What made you decide to focus on leather?

northern fieldsI think it's a new look for me now. That's why it looks fresh when you see it now. All of them are available only in black. I think black is the most standard and coolest color for leather jackets. However, we have a wide variety of leathers such as cow, lamb, and horse, so we hope customers can choose according to their tastes. Whether it is a unisex item or a leather jacket, we are happy if our customers resonate with us.

I would like to ask you about other topics related to special orders, which was your specialty, wasn't it, Mr. Tanaka?

northern fieldsYes, that's right. The topics related to domestic brands and special orders will be the field of Tanaka, our other buyer, so please look forward to next week's update.