“UNSLACKSThere is a brand called "Easy Pants". It is a brand specializing in easy pants created by Ryosuke Nakano, a designer with a tailor background. Previously, the brand produced traditional semi-custom pants. From classic to casual. The pants that they make seem to be the exact opposite of that, revealing a new perspective on fabrics.
."BRACKETSWe interviewed the brand, which had only been sold at a limited number of stores such as "ART" in Shibuya, as well as at "KARAKURI" in Tokyo, when we heard that it opened a store and atelier in March 2018.
-First of all, please tell us how you got started with Anthrax.
I had wanted to work in a job related to clothes since I was in junior high school, but I didn't really understand what kind of work there was in the world of clothing. After entering Bunka Fashion College's Fashion Business Department, I vaguely studied to become a buyer for a select store, but I discovered the joy of making clothes with my own hands rather than through classroom learning. After graduating from the Fashion Business Department, I re-entered the Apparel Design Department and studied the basics in the Men's Design Course. At that time, I had decided to work for a tailor after graduation.
After graduation, I worked for several tailors and sewing factories for five to six years, and gradually began to think about becoming independent. However, I was more interested in making casual clothes by utilizing my skills and experience, not as an independent tailor.
Ryosuke Nakano, owner of the restaurant, was born in 1984.
-What exactly did you want to make?
The reason I originally worked at a tailor was because I wanted to learn the skill of sewing carefully, one by one, without relying on mass production by machine. The first person who taught me after I started working was a craftsman who has been making only suit pants. I thought his pants, which are made with millimeter-by-millimeter adjustments and attention to detail, were cool. I also found it interesting that he went to the extreme of only making pants. It may sound cliché, but I fell in love with his uncompromising attitude, and eventually I came to think that I would like to start my own "brand that only makes pants.
However, if I were to make clothes, I wanted to mix the silhouette, toughness of fabrics, and functionality of military and work manly pants and express them in a brand that is more my own. That is why I decided to launch "Anthrax.
-So the brand was not mainly about easy pants from the beginning.
That's right. We started [Anne Slacks] in 2014 by wholesaling only to a limited number of stores. At that time, we were not yet making easy pants themselves, and based on my experience at a tailor, I was making cotton pants, wool pants, denim slacks, etc. using more traditional, but masculine and tough materials on special order only. Bracket" has been my friend since then. I have been working at a select store in Kyoto, ".museum of your historyWe also had a semi-custom pants ordering session at the "Pants for the Future" event.
I was allowed to work in this way for about three years, but gradually I began to feel that it was not enough, and I wanted to expand the range of pants I could make. My hobby is riding bicycles, so I decided to make pants that are easier to ride a bicycle in, and that is how I came up with the Easy Pants.
-You came to easy pants out of necessity in your own life.
In addition to adding a gusset to the inseam for ease of movement, the easy pants from Anne Slacks have a deeper inseam than normal easy pants, with the aim of allowing for more active movement. We have also shifted from the tough fabrics we used to use to softer, stretchier materials and nylon fabrics.
The fabric is actually used by the U.S. military. It is very smooth and pleasant to the touch, perfect for spring and summer.
ACTIVE EASY PANTS ACU DIGITAL CAMO ¥19,800+TAX
My favorite bicycle. Both bicycles were assembled by Blue Lug Kamiuma. Both frames are made by Surly.
Left: For luggage transport. It has been so customized that there is nothing more to do. Surprisingly heavy and slow, apparently.
Right: For commuting. Minimal customization required, lightweight appearance, and ease of commuting.
-I have the impression that you have made a major change in direction in the three years since you started the brand. You now mainly deal in easy pants, but was it difficult to change direction?
The process for easy pants is easier than for so-called classic pants, but it is difficult to create the sizing and silhouette to make them one-size-fits-all. Unlike regular pants, they are not available in a range of sizes. The easy pants we are currently offering at "Anthrax" accommodate waists from 70 to 90 (w28 to w35 is the standard). Our goal was to create a straight silhouette that would never collapse, no matter what kind of waist a person has. It took a lot of hard work to get there.
-Many of the easy pants that you make are unique, such as Nomex® and cotton gabardine, which is hard to imagine in materials usually used for easy pants. What criteria do you use to select the fabrics?
My own tastes are strong, but I try to use something not too "ordinary. The one I am wearing now is a stretch tropical fabric made of a wool/polyester blend. This material is usually used for spring and summer suits. I find it interesting to make easy pants out of such an unexpected fabric. When I actually try them on, they don't look too casual, and I personally like them.
When we go to fabric stores or manufacturers to look for fabrics, we often choose fabrics that are not often used. Sometimes there are only small amounts of less popular and rare fabrics left, and sometimes it is possible to purchase them at a discount. It is difficult for a small store like ours to buy fabrics in large quantities, and from the seller's point of view, we are more than happy to sell even a small amount of our stock.
-What unique materials have you been interested in recently?
It's the kind of fabric that is used in the military or outdoors. I am particularly interested in stretchy ones, water repellent ones, and ones with some special functionality. Since I started making easy pants, I feel that I have more freedom in choosing and using fabrics. After all, in classic pants, nylon-based fabrics look and look terroiry. They were completely useless. With easy pants, however, the ease of movement is ensured by the pattern, so I can try out a variety of fabrics that I had previously shied away from.
Unlike regular nylon, this material is comfortable to wear like cotton and has excellent moisture absorption and quick-drying properties.
ACTIVE EASY PANTS SUPPLEX® NYLON left DARKTAUPE right COYOTE both ¥19,800+TAX
It is made of 50% wool and 50% polyester fabric that can be washed at home. This is a shorts type.
ACTIVE BAGGY SHORTS STRETCH TROPICAL (Charcoal gray) ¥14,800+TAX
-What made you decide to open your own store? Why did you decide to open your own shop?
One is because I thought that by having a store, I could complete everything myself. In this small space with an atelier attached, I would work on everything from cutting the fabric to sewing, and when the pants were finished, I would put them on the shelves and have customers buy them on the spot. I wanted to try out this series of processes.
The other reason is that I wanted people to be able to see the clothes being made well. I don't think people have many opportunities to see clothes being made, but if they see the clothes they are about to wear being made, they may become attached to the items they purchase. I don't think that mass-produced items are bad, but I would like people to see items made by people who do not rely on mass production. I believe that showing this is what is unique to the UNSLACKS STORE.
The atelier attached to the store. This is where easy pants made of various fabrics are produced.
The upper and middle rows display easy pants, which are currently the company's main line of products. The lower section displays cotton pants and denim slacks that were previously made. 40,000-45,000+TAX
-It has been a month since the opening of the Anthrax Store. What have you noticed or felt after operating the store in Ikenoue?
The store is in a strange location, far from the station and difficult to access, but I think it is important to have it not in Shibuya or Harajuku, but in a place where people come all the way to visit. Before we had the store, we had very few opportunities to have direct conversations with customers, both those who knew about "Anthrax" and those who did not. Conversations with customers are also helpful when creating items. I would like more people to know about , and I would like more people to visit the shop.
I also want to be a restaurant that is loved by the locals. Recently, I feel that Ikenoue is becoming more and more vibrant. There are many interesting stores and delicious restaurants in front of the station. For example, there is a restaurant calledMIN-NANOMr., we're a thrift store.Hagre (HAg-Le)I would go to Sangenjaya for a drink at the end of the day. I hope such a trend from Ikenoue will take root.
Photo_Keisei Arai
Edit&Text_Masato Saita
UNSLACKS STORE
Address: Sano House 1A, 4-34-14 Ikejiri, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo
Phone: 03-6875-5780
Open: 12:00 - 20:00 / Closed on Tuesdays
unslacks.com
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