PROFILE
Born in Tochigi Prefecture in 1977. Influenced by American casual wear, he joined "BEAMS" in 2001. He participated in the launch of "BEAMS Plus" and later became its director. He later worked as the chief buyer of "BEAMS" and then as the director of the entire men's casual wear department before becoming the creative director of the company. In March of this year, he left the company and launched his own brand, "Unlikely.
It doesn't have to be ____, does it?" .
What kind of brand is Unlikely?
Nakata:I love American casual, and this is a brand that expresses that with an innocent and innocent way of thinking. At first glance, the clothes look simple, but details from various genres and eras are mixed in and arranged in a different way than they originally were, which is what makes [UNLIKELY] unique. The brand name is an adjective meaning "unlikely" or "unlikely. As the name suggests, I design while thinking that I want to create something "unlikely.
Mr. Nakata, you left "BEAMS" in March this year to start this brand. What were your thoughts behind that?
Nakata:It was 2019 when I started thinking about starting a brand. I was very worried about how to start the project because I was very satisfied with my work at "Beams". And then I entered the Corona disaster with those thoughts in my mind. With a lot of time on my hands, I decided to take a look at myself and at first just make an image board, and this is the picture I drew.
Nakata:I was born in 1977 to a father who worked for an audio manufacturer called Aiwa and a mother who graduated from art school and became an architect. I was born into a fashionable family with a wall of audio equipment, which was my father's hobby, and my mother's hand-knitted cowtin sweaters (laughs). My father passed away when I was 4 years old, but he was posted to Chicago for a time and I enjoyed the American lifestyle to the fullest and was baptized in IVY, so I thought my roots might be in that kind of family.
In addition to your family, were you greatly influenced by Woody Allen and Yasuhiko Kobayashi's book "The Book of Heavy Duty" as shown in this picture?
Nakata:Yes, I did. When I was researching my favorite things, I found that Woody Allen's movie "Annie Hall" was released in 1977, the year of my birth, and "The Book of Heavy Duty" was also published that year. I felt some kind of connection with them. Over time, I found my way to the "BEAMS PLUS" worldview.
However, "Unlikely" is a different brand from "BEAMS PLUS", isn't it?
Nakata:That's right. I wanted to reinterpret American classics, American traditions, and American uniforms in my own way, and create interesting clothes, which is what "Unlikely" is all about.
Nakata:For example, in the world of American traditional and classic clothing, there is a strict rule that says, "It has to be ____. BEAMS PLUS" has taken on the role of carrying on these rules and conveying them to the world.
However, I was baptized into fashion in the 90's and have celebrated fashion in mixed culture. So I was always looking for ways to express myself that surpassed the "It doesn't have to be XXX" mentality. I was always looking for a way to express myself that would surpass that idea. That is what I am trying to express in "Unlikely.
