Are we really crossing the line between fashion and sports?
Canterbury" has designed uniforms for many powerful rugby nations, and is currently designing uniforms for the Irish national team and the Japanese national team, led by Mr. Ishizuka. Personally, I think that uniforms are a concept that can be applied to "non-native" products as well. Mr. Fujii, you use a variety of names for your products that remind us of specific occupations.
Fujii:Exactly. I think of men's clothing as uniforms. In that sense, the world's clothes are "half-ten. This time, I was reminded that even though I talk about fusing fashion and sports and crossing the border, if I were to launch a brand like "Non-Native Sports" on my own, for example, there are parts of me that would question, "Is that really true? I would be skeptical. And the price would be too high.
nonnative × halfTen TRAINER CAP POLY JERSEY 46 HGS ￥6,000 each
nonnative × halfTen MARINER HAT POLY JERSEY 46 HGS ￥6,000 each
Indeed, "Half Ten" is not as expensive as "Non-Native".
Fujii:We said that many times. We wanted to make sure that the pricing was something that our own parents would feel comfortable with. Because what we usually do is sort of insane.
If we cut it down to price alone, one pair of pants costs 30,000 to 40,000 yen.
Fujii:That's why we set the price range for leather-like walking shoes like these sneakers at about the same level as "New Balance. In terms of price and design, we have kept the price much lower than what we do at "non-native".
nonnative × halfTen MARINER MOC TRAINER COW SUEDE by CallangHan® ￥21,800 each
I think that if you can keep the price down, there will be more possibilities for a variety of people to wear your clothes. Isn't that a big part of the Half Ten concept?
Fujii:That's right. People will know that "Canterbury" is a rugby-derived brand. From there, the symbols will match the logo that we have seen on the uniforms of the Japanese national team. I would be happy if the image spreads in this way and people wear "Half Ten" to watch games and exercise. It should look a little stylish, so you could even wear it to go on a date.
Ishizuka:As for "Canterbury," we would like to emphasize the "non-native" worldview, including the staff who sell our products in our stores. As the world becomes more and more borderless, we tend to make clothes for this and that, which is correct, but fashion is also a free thing. That is why it is important to look at things from a bird's eye view. Half Ten" is a fusion of our and Mr. Fujii's obsessions. That's why we hope that our clothes will be worn in various fields, such as skateboarding, surfing, running, and fishing, and that it will spread to other fields.
Fujii:I have the impression that rugby fan customers are solid human beings. Both players and customers are gentlemen. When the game is over, they shake hands with each other in the spirit of "no side," which is wonderful. We would like to reach out to this gentlemanly demographic. Canterbury is in the fashion zone, and we are in the rugby zone. I would like to look forward to the unknown. I hope to be able to design at least one color for the uniform of the Japanese national team someday, not necessarily at the time of the World Cup 2023 (laughs).
