What is the core of SHIPS JET BLUE as seen through the eyes of two buyers?
SHIPS JET BLUE" was born as a label derived from the select store "SHIPS" to pursue a more street and mode style. The store's unique selection and special-order items edited from a unique perspective have been of some interest to me recently. What are the buyers who draw the blueprints of the store thinking about when they direct the store? In the second week, Raku Tanaka, who mainly buys domestic brands and also plans special-order items, joins us.
I like things that are made by crossing several things.
Kitabatake-san's article published last week (https://www.houyhnhnm.jp/feature/11156/As I mentioned earlier, you are mainly in charge of purchasing domestic brands and planning special orders, right?
TanakaYes, that's right. I sometimes communicate with overseas brands, but basically I am in charge of domestic brands.
When did you join Ships?
TanakaI joined the company in 2003 as a part-time employee and initially worked as a store staff member at the "Ships Ikebukuro Parco" store for about five years. Then in 2008, I was transferred to the Harajuku store as opening staff, and after working there for about six months, I became an assistant buyer for "Ships JetBlue.
And now you are a buyer for "Ships JetBlue," after having left the title of "assistant"?
TanakaI have been working here for eight years, including my time as an assistant. Including my time as an assistant, this year will be my eighth year.
Have you changed your mindset over the course of your career as a buyer?
TanakaI have not changed my stance on the store, so my thoughts on buying have not changed at all from 8 years ago. However, I have met many designers over the years and have been inspired by them, so naturally my inner self has changed. I think this has had more than a little influence on my buying.
I see. What have been your influences in terms of fashion?
TanakaI was reading "BOON" magazine when I was in junior high school. It was the 90's, and the "backstreet" scene was in its heyday. For some reason, I was attracted to hip-hop fashion, and I would look up what the artists were wearing and buy their clothes. Then, when I was in high school, I became aware of the backstreets and went to Harajuku with a magazine in my hand. I thought I could meet cool people there.
So the roots are hip-hop.
TanakaI've been listening to hip-hop since junior high school. I have been listening to hip-hop since junior high school. BOON" had a series of articles by DJ WATARAI. In it, De La Soul's "Stakes Is High" and A Tribe Called Quest's "Beats, Rhymes and Life" were introduced. I thought the jackets looked cool, so I went to a CD store and bought those two albums. My junior high school ears didn't understand it at all, but I kept listening to it anyway. Then a friend of mine let me listen to "Burning Wu-Tang Clan" and I was hooked.
And did this naturally lead to an interest in street culture?
TanakaI think that's true in a broad sense. But basically, I was introduced to music and skating as a part of that culture. The film director Spike Jonze shot a music video for a movie called "Drop" by The Far Side once upon a time. I personally really liked it.
Tanaka:I dug up Spike Jonze and found out that he made skate videos, and that's how I came to like skating as a culture. Hip-hop is the premise for everything.
Are all of the personal items you brought with you today hip-hop mixtapes?
TanakaThe base is hip-hop. But it is also a mix of other genres of music, and some of these artists are now house DJs. I like the sense of crossover.
Hip-hop is also composed of sampled sounds from various genres, isn't it?
TanakaI am attracted to things that are made by multiplying something with something else, rather than things made of a single material. I am somewhat attracted to things that are made by multiplying something with something else, rather than things that are composed of a single material.
Who is the owner of the artwork?
Tanaka:
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TanakaThis is a work by an artist named Kosuke Kawamura, and it is also composed of photo collages. Many of Mr. Kawamura's works are mixed up, and they resonate with my sensibilities. I had a live collage session at the "Ships Hiroshima" store once, and I bought this at that time. I am not an art lover, but I wanted to have this one.
I would like to do a special order project with a designer who I feel something is hooking me.
Do you have a "mix-up" mindset in your buying process as well?
TanakaI am a cynical person (laughs). I am a cynical person (laughs). That's why I don't want to just pick up a brand's proposed look at an exhibition. I buy items so that they will function as a single piece when they are placed in the "Ships JetBlue" store.
The store's proposal is to mix brands with brands, rather than to create a single coordinate of brands.
TanakaYes, that's right. When I go to exhibitions, I look at the clothes thinking, "This item would be cool if I paired it with the brand of pants I just saw.
What criteria do you use to decide which brands to carry and which not to carry?
TanakaI look at the items, of course, but in my case, I look at the designer. I look at whether the designer is cool or not. Of course, there are many cool people in brands that we do not carry, but the brands of designers with whom I feel a certain hook when communicating with them are good.
As a buyer of "Ships JetBlue", as well as for you personally, you prefer brands that attract you in some way. It would be natural to say so, but don't you have a strong personal preference?
TanakaI don't think that's a bad thing. However, I don't think that is a bad thing. Without a certain degree of open communication, it is impossible to create good custom-made items. I don't think we can deliver items that resonate with our customers if we simply "change colors" or "change fabrics.
We have asked the designers of the brands that have special-order items at "SHIPS JET BLUE" to comment on you and your store. Could you tell us what you respect about each of them?
Tanaka:
VAINL ARCHIVE / Kohei Ohkita
We live in an age where a lot of information is available at our fingertips. In these days when we have to compete with different ways of presenting the same product, I think "Ships JetBlue" is developing and presenting itself in a unique way. I have been working with Mr. Tanaka for nearly five years now, and I have always been impressed by his calm buying style. At the same time, he is always eager to try new things while maintaining an unchanging attitude. In other words, his "silent yet vigilant" attitude is perhaps what makes him so appealing.
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TanakaMr. Ohkita not only knows everything about hip-hop and the backstreets that I have come to know, but he also possesses a broader knowledge of the field. I am very impressed by the wide range of information you are able to share with us.
ALLEGE / Ryo Yamaguchi
I think the strength of "Ships JetBlue" is that each season it has a basic yet modern mood in a good sense. Since Mr. Tanaka is of the same generation as me, I find it fascinating that we can talk not only about clothes, but also about personal matters. Whenever I make a special order, I always design it with a special feel in mind.
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TanakaMr. Yamaguchi: Mr. Yamaguchi has always been in the music industry, so he has a deep knowledge of music. Whenever we talk, we always talk about music. He talks about his favorite black music from the 90s to the 2000s, and I always learn a lot from him.
Photo_HITOMI HOZUMI
Son of the Cheese / Kite Yamamoto
We are always grateful to "Ships JetBlue" for seeing our brand as a "fashion brand. Mr. Tanaka comes up with special order plans that we would never have thought of on our own, so we are always excited to work with him. He is always very calm, but sometimes in a very gentlemanly way, and I always learn a lot from him during our meetings.
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TanakaMr. Yamamoto is a person of a different dimension for me, in a good sense of the word. He is a different type of person than I have ever met before, and the paths he has taken are different from mine. That's why he inspires me in many ways, and I respect him a lot because of his energy and vitality.
tone / Takuhisa Maede
I think the appeal of "Ships JetBlue" is that it offers a unique lineup of fashion without any boundaries between street and mode. I am truly honored to have my brand's items developed in a store with such a long history, as it represents a level of excellence and a sense of trust. Mr. Tanaka is a person who values not only the clothes themselves, but also the culture and history that accompanies them. I am also attracted to his unique buying style that skillfully mixes the culture that is currently being born. I also like the cynical comments he makes when we meet and talk (laughs).
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TanakaMr. Maede is a very flat person, both in terms of human nature and fashion. He has an excellent sense of balance, or rather, he is good at picking out the best parts while crossing over into various areas. He is an all-rounder with a wide range of skills, such as starting a knitwear brand even though he used to work for a street brand. He is a good all-rounder with a broad range of skills, and I am always grateful for his open-mindedness and willingness to listen to my cocky ideas.
Hombre Niño / Yoshifumi Egawa, Masafumi Seki
Ships JetBlue" has been a store that has carried our brand since we started it. Whenever we plan a special order, Mr. Tanaka always gives us a "simple theme," and we design items based on that theme. Mr. Tanaka always looks at things from his own unique perspective, and I think that is what makes him so attractive.
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TanakaI think that's the charm of Mr. Egawa, who is a legend in his own right. I used to follow Urahara myself, and I am very grateful to be able to work like this with someone who was above the clouds. I once had dinner with him, but I am still too nervous to speak well (laughs).
When we make a special order, we throw a "subject" to the designer.
You mentioned that you ask for special orders from brands you are attracted to.
TanakaI think it is meaningless unless it expresses the goodness of the brand, so I order items with an awareness of expanding the appeal of the brand rather than bringing out the colors of "Ships JetBlue". My personal desire is to create items that will make people who buy the brand's inline items want to get their hands on the special orders as well.
But you can't order something that has nothing to do with the restaurant, can you?
TanakaAs mentioned in the comments by Mr. Egawa and Mr. Seki of "Ombre Nino," I throw out keywords related to "Ships JetBlue" to the designers and ask them to come up with a theme. I also try to come up with themes that match the characteristics of the brand and the season's creations. I hope to come up with something that shines.
What was the theme for the special-order items to be developed by "SHIPS JET BLUE" this season? We started with a jacket from "Sunova Cheese x Ships JetBlue" and a poncho from "Tone x Ships JetBlue".
TanakaThe Shibuya store will celebrate its 30th anniversary this October, and I decided to create special order items exclusive to the Shibuya store, so I ordered these two items. The theme for the "SUNOVA Cheese x SHIPS JetBlue" jacket is exactly "Shibuya" (laughs). The motif is the building that houses the brand's store on the Namiki Bridge in Shibuya. The graphics were drawn by Nigel Graf. It's a pop-up representation of the dirty scenery of Shibuya, with cheese on the ground and rats crawling on it.
Sweat poncho ¥23,000+TAX
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TanakaTone x Ships JetBlue: The subject of this item is "ponchos. Actually, we did a special order of the same poncho last year. It was so well received that the staff at the Shibuya store asked us to do it again, so we are releasing it as an upgraded version. We've added a hood design, slash pockets, and changed the colors to khaki and black this year.
How about Primitivo x Ships JetBlue?
Tanaka:
Primitivo × Ships JetBlue] sweatshirt ¥13,000+TAX
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TanakaI'm not sure if this is a brand with psychedelic graphics or not, but it's an American brand. There is no particular subject for this one... (laughs). However, the graphics were newly drawn for this collection, and the use of champion sweatshirts for the body is a point that is unique to us.
How about the "Vinyl Archive x Ships JetBlue" and "Sunova Cheese x Ships JetBlue" set-ups?
TanakaI myself have been wanting to wear a set-up as I get older. That's why I asked them to make a "set-up" for me. VINYL ARCHIVE" makes meticulous clothes, and "SUNOVACCIOUS" emphasizes culture in its creations. What kind of set-ups would be created if both of them made set-ups? I wondered. By daring to give the same theme to two brands with opposite manufacturing styles, we wanted to feel the differences in design and the interesting aspects of the two.
I want you to dare to incorporate opposites to bring out your individuality.
I'd like to talk about this season's "Ships JetBlue." What are some of the highlights?
TanakaI see that you are now dealing with a new brand, ETHOS. There have been many brands with a clean image in the past, but we decided to bring in a new style. I felt the clothes of "Ethos" had a modern atmosphere and a "poisonous" look, like those worn by delinquents in Tokyo.
From ETHOS 16FW season look.
From SHIPS JET BLUE 16FW season look.
So you're saying there's been a change from your previous emphasis on designers?
TanakaNo, that is not true at all. I have been visiting exhibitions for a long time, and I often communicated with the designers, Mr. Yanaiuchi and Mr. Ikeda. Through such communication, I felt that this brand would be differentiated from others, and above all, I could trust items made by these people. So there has been no change in my thinking.
Lastly, this season's SHIPS JetBlue brand offers styles under the keyword "genderless.
Tanaka:
From SHIPS JET BLUE 16FW season look.
From SHIPS JET BLUE 16FW season look.
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Tanaka: I can tell from this look that the girl is wearing a sweatshirt with a damaged look. But for some reason, it doesn't give a dirty impression. I think it is because the sweatshirt accentuates the daintiness of the woman. I hope you can feel the exquisite balance between the two.
So the word "genderless" fits well to express this sense of balance.
TanakaI think that's right. Rather than dressing in a conventional way, I dare to incorporate things that are the opposite to bring out my individuality. I want customers to enjoy that kind of style. I would be happy if they could see that it is really cool to wear clothes with this approach.
SHIPS Shibuya Store
B1-4F Jinnan 1-chome Building, 1-18-1 Jinnan, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Open: 11:00 - 20:30
Phone: 03-3496-0481
