FOUNDER'S STORY | From Maritime Self-Defense Force officer to a Kyoto kimono venture. And now, a KIMONO brand for the world.

This text was written in 2024, around the time Play KIMONO was launched. While our philosophy at Play KIMONO has evolved even further since then, I have kept this original text to share the story of why this brand was born.

＊＊＊

I am writing here about what Play KIMONO aims to achieve, along with my slightly unconventional background.

Although I run a kimono shop in Kyoto, I am originally from Oita Prefecture and have no family members or relatives working in the kimono industry. In that context, I started my own bespoke kimono shop in 2014.

In addition—and this is the part people find most surprising—after graduating from high school, I joined the Self-Defense Forces.

From there, I will document why I pursued the path of kimono, and how it led to Play KIMONO.

I realize this story may not quite match the atmosphere of Play KIMONO, but as we are launching this brand, I hope this helps you understand Play KIMONO more deeply and with clearer contours.

Thoughts from traveling the world

During my time with the Maritime Self-Defense Force, I visited the United States and various South American countries on ocean-going voyages. This was around 2005.

Encountering people proud of their own culture

The ability of a naval vessel to enter a port means that it is on friendly terms with that country; such visits serve as a form of Japanese diplomacy. Therefore, no matter which country we visited, a welcome ceremony was always held, and we were treated with that country’s culture. Through songs, dance, music, and food, people in every country appeared to me to be proud of their own culture.

Like any young person who has traveled abroad, I felt how little I knew about Japan and how much Japan is loved by the world, which made me want to learn more about my home country.

Cultural Diplomacy

Realizing that the power of culture acts as a lubricant for diplomacy was another catalyst for my pursuit of the kimono.

In "On War," the Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz wrote, "War is merely the continuation of politics by other means." This suggests that we must exhaust diplomatic efforts, such as politics, before resorting to war. However, my thought was that before issues reach the level of politics, there is exchange at the private and economic levels, and culture can play an important role within that.

To put this bluntly, in the modern era, the power of manga and anime is overwhelming. There are many foreigners who become interested in Japan, study the language, visit the country, and become even greater Japanophiles because of manga and anime. I believed that earning such goodwill, while it may seem like a roundabout way, leads to the stability of diplomatic relations and the deterrence of war.

The Power of Clothing

By the way, it may be hard to imagine, but when you go abroad wearing the uniform of the Self-Defense Forces, you are treated with great respect. Paying significant respect to those in professions dedicated to the public is common sense in the global perspective.

I recall walking through a slum in a Caribbean island nation. Having lost track of the hotel I was staying at, I asked an elderly man for directions. His reply was, "Please head toward that direction, Sir." He added "Sir" at the end. To him, I looked like any young Asian man. The fact that he used an honorific was not out of respect for me personally, but out of respect for the Self-Defense Force uniform I was wearing.

It was an experience I had never had in Japan; I was astonished, and it left a lasting impression on me.

It was at this moment I felt the power of clothing and became interested in the kimono as a uniform for the Japanese people.

Visiting a Kimono Shop

After returning to Japan, I was eager to have one kimono made, so I visited a kimono shop. My experience was exactly what many of you might imagine.

Despite the high prices, the clerk's explanation was insufficient, and the shop—like many others—was unfamiliar with men's kimono, making it impossible to get a properly tailored fit.

Seeking to learn more, I began visiting artisans directly. Artisans explain very logically why their products are of high quality. They mention technical aspects like the number of warp threads or that the thread is spun by hand—simple, convincing arguments that you understand the moment you hear them.

Furthermore, many of them were lovable people, and I grew to adore these artisans.

However, I learned that because they were working for such meager wages, there were no successors, and the aging of artisans was progressing rapidly.

As mentioned earlier, the kimono I purchased at the shop were expensive. Upon investigating the cause, I found it lay in the intermediary distribution system. Passing through small local manufacturers, regional wholesalers, Kyoto wholesalers, and then the kimono shop itself, prices inevitably become high even if no one is making an excessive profit. Moreover, because the supply structure hasn't changed despite a drastic decline in demand, the burden falls on the artisans, who are the weakest link in the chain.

Additionally, the information I gathered at the time indicated that unethical kimono chains were engaging in unscrupulous business practices (it was a social issue involving forced high-interest loans and chain bankruptcies).

Looking at the kimono industry as a whole, I concluded that no matter how wealthy I became and how much kimono I purchased, the structural issues meant the artisans would never prosper. I decided to become a kimono merchant myself to solve these problems.

I believe this was in 2007.

At 27, I poured all my salary into kimono, purchasing nearly 2 million yen worth each year. With no savings, I set my sights on the kimono business. During a seven-month period of being unemployed, living hand-to-mouth, I visited kimono production areas across the country, job hunting while contemplating whether I should become a retailer, a wholesaler, a manufacturer, or an artisan.

In the end, a very reputable kimono shop in Tokyo took me in, and I worked there in sales for five years. During that time, I continued to take night buses to visit artisans.

Founding Kyo-Gofuku Nijuhachi

Since I still had no money, I returned to my hometown in Oita Prefecture with my family and worked part-time at Uniqlo and Watami for six months to save 500,000 yen in startup capital.

In 2014, I moved to Kyoto and started Kyo-Gofuku Nijuhachi.

Initially, I thought the problem was that customers didn't trust the pricing and quality in stores, so I produced the highest-quality kimono on a made-to-order basis and offered them at a very low price. However, I realized that this alone would not solve the problem. After various subsequent initiatives, I have reached the point where I can offer the best kimono in Kyoto.

However, there is not a day that goes by where I don't feel a sense of impatience when I compare "our company's growth speed" with the "rate of decline in the production background."

There is no end to manufacturers and artisans going out of business or declaring bankruptcy, and facilities that can never be replicated once they are gone are being torn down.

Leading to Play KIMONO

One could say that the decline of the kimono production background is simply a trend of the times, but my initial intent was to make not just a ripple, but an impact like a meteorite to help preserve it.

Through my reflections, I concluded that in order to achieve this, I had to get more people to wear Japanese clothing.

What constitutes Japanese clothing?

When considering what constitutes "Western clothing," I don't think there is a strict definition. Perhaps it involves the use of paper patterns, three-dimensional tailoring to fit the body, or roots in Western history.

However, when asked what Japanese clothing or kimono is, I think most Japanese people can only imagine standard, formal kimono.

Yet, there are various garments from the Edo period that workers wore, such as *momohiki* (trousers), *hanten* (jackets), *happi* coats, and *karusan-bakama*.

While it is true that traditional kimono do not use paper patterns, items like *momohiki* have quite complex shapes, leading one to suspect that patterns may have been used for them.

Eastern and Western clothing have influenced each other

Western influence

In fact, among the items many of you believe to be "Japanese clothing," there are those that originated abroad.

The *kuro-montsuki* (black crested kimono) I mentioned earlier was created in the Meiji era to correspond to Western morning coats.

Furthermore, the *jinbaori* (surcoat) made in the Edo period after the time of the warring daimyo was based on the clothing worn by Spanish and Portuguese people who came to Japan during the Muromachi period. Imported *rasha* (wool) was often used for the fabric, but not just the fabric—the design itself was imported.

Around the same time, Japanese people began wearing Portuguese "calças" (trousers), which independently evolved into the *karusan-bakama*. To us, *karusan-bakama* looks like quintessentially Japanese clothing.

Eastern influence

The *japonais* robes exported in the 17th century were used as formal indoor wear by the European nobility, and the *cambaya* is considered a root of the "KIMONO robes" sold in the West today.

In the process of dresses becoming more linear through designers like Paul Poiret between the 19th and 20th centuries, it seems the influence of the kimono was significant.

Also, the origins of the LIBERTY prints (UK), which are very popular among women in Japan, lie in selling Japanese and Eastern fabrics and art objects.

The *cambaya*, made in India in imitation of the *japonais* robe, was later produced in Europe and led to the full-scale print industries in the UK and France. I suspect this is directly connected to the fabrics LIBERTY currently sells. It is reasonable to believe that Japanese influence exists at the roots of British and French printed fabrics.

Is Eastern inferior to Western?

With our current sensibilities, we tend to think of Japanese clothing as outdated and Western clothing as remaining at the cutting edge, and I don't think that is wrong.

However, if we look at the exchange of clothing from a broader perspective, we can say that there is sufficient potential for Japanese clothing to spread to the world as well. It is just that because kimono merchants failed to evolve the kimono, and due to the wave of Westernization since the Meiji era, Japanese clothing has faded to this extent.

What I want to say is that just as Western culture is wonderful, Eastern and Japanese culture are, naturally, just as wonderful.

Defending Culture

For me, spreading and developing kimono is similar to how anime and manga have permeated the world; by fostering an affinity for Japan through KIMONO, we should be able to build better relationships.

You don't need to understand anything as stiff as this; I would be happy if you simply enjoyed Play KIMONO as fashion. However, I wrote this thinking that some of you might feel differently if you knew it was a brand started with these fundamental thoughts in mind.

Thank you for sticking with this long piece!