Heart of Harajuku renewed
Teeming teen shopping haven LaForet Harajuku opened in 1978 and has been a pivotal part of Japan's youth culture ever since. The complex has had a few subdued periods over the years but is currently experiencing a happier chapter in its history. Earlier this month it underwent a major overhaul that saw existing outlets refurbished and a dozen or so new ones added, including U.K. chain stores Topshop and Topman.
Topshop began life as a cheap-chic retailer with a fast-paced stock cycle similar to those of Spain's Zara and Sweden's H&M, but it has steadily been transforming itself into a more upscale brand through runway shows and collaborations with talented young designers. Topshop, and its menswear sibling Topman, has been expanding overseas through franchise deals and has outlets in 29 countries. For the fashion capitals of New York and Tokyo, it has entered into partnerships with specialty stores (Barneys and LaForet, respectively), and has plans for major expansion. The first step is the opening of a combined Topshop/Topman store inside LaForet Harajuku, which stocks edgier designs, many created in collaboration with up-and-coming talents based in London. Topshop PR manager Andrew Leahy (above, second left), in town with other executives for a launch event attended by over 1,500 frenzied fashionistas, described the new store as "a slick boutique version of what we do in the U.K." The pristine white interior may be a far cry from the jumbled London megastore, but the high-fashion-at-low-prices concept is largely unchanged. Westerners looking for London sizes will be pleased to know that Topshop carries clothing as large as a Japanese size 16.
Nagi Noda, Japan's most in-demand art director, the woman behind ad campaigns for Coca-Cola and Nike, and inventor of the teddy bear-like Hanpanda, reveals her latest fashion brand today in LaForet Harajuku, whose award-winning ad campaigns she has also directed. Titled Broken Label, it is created in partnership with prolific Lowbrow artist Mark Ryden, who designed the cover art for Michael Jackson's album "Dangerous." Anyone desperate to own a T-shirt printed with a decapitated girl or other similarly macabre items should hurry, as the store-cum-gallery is only open for 12 days.