PROFILE
He started selling at select store EDIFITH in 2010, and became a buyer in 2013, spending his days traveling around Japan and abroad. He is in charge of special orders for Stan Smith and is also the planner of the triple collaboration project.
PROFILE
After working as a buyer for the select store "EDIFICE", he became independent. After working on his own, he launched "Reshop" in April 2003. His buying with an emphasis on storytelling is unique.
PROFILE
Representative of alpha.co.ltd. He has worked on various brands and stores such as "Graph Paper," "Fresh Service," and "Hibiya Central Market," and is involved in all areas related to fashion and culture.
Clothes you'll want to match with your standard sneakers.
Edifice, RECHOP, and GRAPHOPER are an unlikely combination this time. Please tell us why you decided to collaborate with these three companies in the first place.
Yamamoto:We have been working with "adidas" at EDIFICE for a long time, and this season we made a special order of "Stan Smiths" as well. I have been dealing with them for many years, and I had a feeling in my mind that I wanted to make them more popular. When I was thinking about what to do, I asked Mr. Kaneko for advice.
South:The two of you must have been good friends.
Kaneko:We talk about it a lot internally.
Yamamoto:Because of this relationship, when I mentioned that I wanted to do something interesting with the sneakers we had specially ordered, Minami's name came up. How about having "Graph Paper" make clothes to go with them? I asked him if he would be interested in having "Graph Paper" make clothes to go with them.
South:That's what we were talking about (laughs).
Did the brand "Graph Paper" immediately come to your mind?
Kaneko:The special-order "Stan Smiths" are made of high quality leather and have a higher grade feel. I felt that Minami was the only person around me who could handle them. Stan Smiths" are a standard item, aren't they? Minami is good at taking such authentic items and reworking them to suit today's needs. I thought he was the right person to understand the quality of this special-order item and create clothes to match it.
Yamamoto:When I heard the story, I thought it sounded like a sure thing. It was easy to visualize, or rather, Stan Smith and "graph paper" seemed to be a great match.
What did you think when you heard about this?
South:In the first place, Edifice and I have no business relationship, but since Mr. Kaneko requested it, I felt I couldn't refuse (laughs).
All:LOL!
South:Also, I really like "Stan Smiths. I have about 15 pairs myself, mostly white, regular ones. When I opened the "Graph Paper" store, I had a pair of Stan Smiths in the store. I thought they would be good to match with our clothes. So I could easily understand what you said.
A: Once again, please tell us what parts of the "Stan Smiths" were specially ordered this time around.
ÉDIFICE×adidas〉Stan Smith ¥16,000＋TAX
Yamamoto:We used high quality leather for the upper. I also embroidered "STAN SMITH" in gold on the side, and changed the color scheme of the heel patch to match the embroidery. Also, a gold bullet tip at the end of the laces and goat leather for the lining.
South:The material is really good. It just feels so upgraded.
