PROFILE
Born in 1961. After working as a shoe designer, he launched the apparel brand "General Research" in 1994. He has now changed the name to "Mountain Research" and other labels to suit different purposes, exploring highly specialized products and styles. He produced "Suigen no Mori Camp-Land," a campground that opened last year in Doshi-mura, Yamanashi Prefecture, based on his many years of field work and experience at private campgrounds.
PROFILE
Born in 1973, he fell in love with the world of vintage clothing in his teens and joined the staff of the now defunct vintage store Metro Gold in 1995. After working as a store manager, he left the company and opened "Bamboo Shoot" in 1998. At first, it was a select store, offering style suggestions by picking up domestic and international outdoor brands, but now, in addition to that, it also offers its own brand of the same name.
PROFILE
. Born in 1978. He studied menswear patternmaking at Bunka Fashion College, and since becoming independent, he has been receiving offers to pattern for famous collection brands in Japan and abroad. In 2007, he founded the denim brand "Stabilizer Jeans," for which he also designs.
I hated the feeling of the Japanese mountains, where only the high road was allowed (Kobayashi).
Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules. I would like to ask you a few questions, but basically I would like the three of you to talk freely.
Setsumasa Kobayashi (hereafter Kobayashi):Hi . Are you sure you want to finally unravel Kai's star quality?
Kazuhiko Kai (hereafter referred to as Kai):What?
So ....... That's where I'm aiming for.
Tomo Yazane (hereinafter referred to as "Yazane"):(Laughter)
Kobayashi:Then let's get to that point somehow.
. But I came prepared with some rather serious questions (laughs). First of all, may I ask when and how the collaboration between "Mountain Research" and "BAMBOOSHOOT" began?
Kai:It started about 9 years ago , I think.
Kobayashi:Has it been that long?
Kai:That's how long it has been since I started working on this project. However, we started in earnest in the spring/summer of 2009. I was asked to join the "BAMBOOSHOOT" brand when it was fully renewed, and I have continued to work with them every season.
Kobayashi:Yes, it is.
Kai:It all started with a printed flannel shirt I bought at Mr. Kobayashi's place that I liked so much that I wore it endlessly.
Kobayashi:The checkered pattern is gone.
Kai:Yes (laughs). The print pattern was gone and there were holes in the fabric. When Mr. Kobayashi recognized the shirt, I thought, "I think I've seized an opportunity ...... to make something (together)" (laughs).
Yazumi:(Laughter).
Kai:It was 2013. I always liked the B.D. shirts that Mr. Kobayashi always wears because they are so cool, and I always liked B.D. shirts myself, but I knew that I could definitely make something good with Mr. Kobayashi. I borrowed the letter "Ph" and made an oxford B.D. shirt with embroidery on the chest. What Mr. Kobayashi creates is something completely new with the original material in place, so it was a great opportunity for me to study the work style of my most respected senior colleague.
This B.D. shirt is made of high-density, extra-thick cotton oxford fabric, and was released in the regular open-front style in the first collaboration in 2013, but has been updated to a pullover version for release. The "Ph" embroidery on the right chest is the same as it was back then, and the left chest pocket has a two-layer construction, with the inside being deep enough to easily hold a smartphone or sunglasses. Pullover Trek button-down shirt ¥28,600
Do you remember when you first received the proposal for the collaboration?
Kobayashi:Every time I saw Kai, I knew the pattern was disappearing rapidly (laugh), and he said he wanted to do it. Unfortunately, by that time, the print plates I had originally wanted to use had been discarded (laugh), and I had to start from scratch to make new plates, but I think this gave me a stronger sense of working together with him.
Mountain Research has had some high-profile collaborations, such as the one with Reebok, but it started very naturally with you and Kai, didn't it?
Kobayashi:We haven't done that kind of thing for a long time, but we talked about doing it for a good while, what, five years ago?
Masahiro Abe, Mountain Research:Yes . From that point on, I felt that Mr. Kobayashi began to soften (laughs), or rather, spread out.
Kobayashi:They say it's my fault (laughs).
Kai Yazane:(Laughter).
Kobayashi:As a creator, it is fun to see people say, "I wear this a lot! or to see the patterns fade away after too many wears, it's a lot of fun. It is impossible to start a project if you are suddenly asked to do it by a stranger or a company, and Kai and I are neighbors in Nakameguro, so we have a lot in common. In the past, I was invited to participate in a trash pickup along the river that Kai organized, and he used to visit our mountain. If you notice, we have been playing together for many years, so to speak, we are friends.
I heard that you made five models this season, and the words "trek" and "hike" appear many times in the description. Could you tell us why you decided on that concept?
Kai:Our store has gear and clothing from top-range outdoor brands, and I use them myself, but that's more like sports. I thought that if we were going to work with Mr. Kobayashi, it would be better to use our original outdoor style, not a sports style. High-tech features such as quick-drying, waterproof, and elasticity are important, but they are not necessary for us, and we wanted to value natural materials as well.
Kobayashi:I don't climb mountains, but what I do is still fashionable, and I'd like to do something in a different category from the high-tech world. I don't climb mountains, but what I do is still fashion, and I'd like to do it in a category of customs that is different from the high-tech realm. . I don't have the skills to do functional wear.
. You said that the outdoors, as a form of entertainment, is a trek.
Kobayashi:It's not mountain climbing where customs are probably involved, and if you go down the mountain, it's not about the mountain either. For example, the U.S. has a long history of trekking , and a long history of road trips. . It's not like in Japan, where you go to the back of a mountain and immediately start climbing. . There are many flat areas and undeveloped forests, and that's why they call it trekking. Climbing and descending are slow. My colleague Ishii (Hideaki . Mountain Research PR) is a trekker in the Appalachians. (Mountain Research PR) went to the Appalachians, he told me that the guy who came from the middle of the climb came from the town carrying a pizza box (laughs).
Kai Yazane:(Laughter).
Kobayashi:I was sick of the feeling that only the high street was allowed, or that only people who entered through the front door were allowed, and I wanted to be somewhere different. To put it more simply, I don't feel comfortable unless I'm in a place where there are a lot of people who walk around listening to the (Grateful) Dead or Phish. . What myself and Kai are doing is talking about if you're going to trek through a place like that. . it's a good idea to be composed of details that have gimmicks that are useful and usable only then.
