After 20 years of quiesence, bickering and squandered potential, Japan's fashionistas may finally have begun to get their act together.
Spurred by plummeting profits in the face of competition from China, Japan's rag trade and its Ministry of Trade, Economy and Industry have set out in long overdue pursuit of "fashion capital" status for trend-crazy Tokyo and have finally morphed the city's flagship fashion event from the shambolic six-week slog of old into a slickly run fashion fest spanning a mere 10 days.
It's a miraculous transformation, and one of which all those involved should feel proud. But Tokyo still has a long way to go before it can hope to challenge New York, London, Milan and Paris as a fashion business mecca and generator of genuine global excitement.
For one, the event launched this month, and officially titled Japan Fashion Week in Tokyo, was conspicuous for its lack of big names. Successful Japanese designers inevitably follow compatriots like Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto to Paris, and the prospect of a better-organized Tokyo event wasn't attractive enough to lure them back to their homeland.
Until the event's organizers can develop an effective PR machine funded by generous corporate sponsors, like Olympus for New York and Mercedes for Australia, it seems doomed to be trapped in a chicken and egg trap: nobody comes to Tokyo because big designers show overseas; big designers show overseas because nobody comes to Tokyo.
For this inaugural event, the number of visitors from abroad only just made it into double figures. That alone indicates just how marginal Tokyo still is compared with the 2,000 fashion-biz folk attending London's still struggling Fashion Week, or the 10,000 clamoring to scope Paris's twice-yearly catwalk confections.
However, though world-renowned Japanese designers were notable non-attenders, several household names did decide to support the event and stage runway shows in the marquees specially erected around the Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery.
Among these, veteran designer Keita Maruyama presented a reprise of the collection he showed in Paris a month ago, unleashing an impressive parade of pretty dresses in bright floral prints. The high quality of this lineup was a reminder that the standards of workmanship on display at the European collections are far higher than those in the Far East.
Meanwhile, some 1,000 people clamoured to get a seat for the most hyped show of the week: the Tokyo debut of skulls-and-studs menswear brand Mastermind Japan, whose designer Masaaki Homma rounded up a stellar cast of Tokyo fashion notables to showcase what was effectively a greatest hits-style collection. Each of the famous names gracing the catwalk recalled past Mastermind collaborations with major players like Disney, NTT DoCoMo and the Fuji Rock Festival. Among these, the most memorable turn came from Sho Ayakoji of comedy rock band Kishidan (famed for their huge pompadour hairstyles), who sported a T-shirt produced in conjunction with the recent Ramones documentary movie.
Also cranking up the adrenaline was the latest extravaganza from Dress Camp, at which the front-row luminaries included artist Takashi Murakami of Louis Vuitton pop print fame. To tickle their fashion fancy, Dress Camp designer Toshikazu Iwaya chose archetypal femme fatale Mata Hari as his muse, showing voluminous looks on vampish models coquettishly crowned with long, oily hair.
While Dress Camp's Iwaya is lauded for having brought a touch of glam to the generally dour shows on the Tokyo circuit, it is streetwear for men at which Japanese designers really excel.
In this department, the most outstanding collection of the season -- staged three days before the official launch of Japan Fashion Week -- was from Daisuke Obana's N. Hoolywood label.
Using a troupe of pubescent models cast from Tokyo's international schools, Obana showed that he has not only an abundance of good ideas, but also impeccable taste and, crucially, a sense of humor.
But Obana wasn't a lone star. Two other menswear designers provided some wow factor, too: namely Soichiro Ito, who was inspired by the Pluto character in the Astro Boy cartoon series to create an otherworldly, androgynous look for his Soe label; and Taishi Nobukuni, whose elaborate show was staged to the sounds of a live performance by upcoming rock outfit The Vivians. Nobukuni, a graduate of St. Martin's College in London, titled his collection American Policy and took his bow wearing a Buck Fush T-shirt.
Last but far from least in Tokyo's tentative tilt at global fashion glory there were also a couple of impressive debut collections, most notably from Tetsuya Yamamoto, whose brand name Potto might well allude to how he came up with such bizarre but beautiful creations. This Kyoto-born designer sent models out holding placards bearing images of the inspiration for their sculptural outfits or messages like "My Skirt is a Tent," which explained the origins of the odd patterns from which they were made.
Although Yamamoto has staged small presentations for his label before, last week saw the first-ever catwalk show for the Ylang Ylang brand. Designer Ryunosuke Aoyanagi showed great promise with a collection at the Grand Hyatt Hotel that included sheer blouses and short pants -- both set to be key items in stores next spring -- along with classy eveningwear subtly embellished with frills and ruffles.
Fringe shows like Aoyanagi's are an essential part of any fashion event, but there need to be more international VIPs in attendance before talented designers can get the exposure needed to fuel a viable fashion business.
Japan Fashion Week in Tokyo certainly won't be hitting the headlines this season, but its organizers may have hit on a formula for success in the long-run. Feedback from participating designers has apparently been positive and the centralized venue has fostered a feeling of solidarity that might just end up earning the Tokyo fashion scene the recognition it has long been yearning for.
