Because we couldn’t do a show due to Corona (the last physical show we held was two years ago at A/W 2020-21 LFW), we took a different approach than usual and worked with art directors and writers doing photo shoots in places like Sweden and Netherlands, but this made me realize the powerfulness of the format of a runway show. With this show, I think that we were able to more clearly communicate our brand identity, which is based around the idea of “when the place changes and the person who wears it changes, the clothes change to fit that person’s individuality”.

Of course, there is something I want to convey through creation, but I don’t want to impose it all as a TOGA style. For example, when presenting in London, I am conscious of styling and casting so that the vibe of the city of London and the personality of the person wearing it are well mixed. The person who always wears TOGA clothes is the main character. The base set of items shown in presentations we staged in London and Tokyo this time are still same, but I tried to style them according to the individuality of the wearer.

The first look – a tailored jacket and docked dress – symbolizes the concept, but for several seasons now I’ve been doing tailored pieces where cutouts are used to alter their proportions in an attempt to give meaning to the universality of tailoring. This season my prompt was focusing on the “space” created between the oversized clothes and the body, and I get a bright, happy feeling when I think about and clothes shaking and bouncing in that space when you move your body. So I am trying to express of the way that somehow being inside a garment that is moving gives you this uplifting, happy feeling.

The mood has been kind of glum recently because of the virus, so instead of that seriousness, I wanted to express a sense of fun that goes beyond it all. I think that is a real manifestation of our hearts’ desires and I was able to put together a collection that faced up to my feelings directly.

I like to keep up with the latest developments in technology and each season I get ideas from handling new fabrics. The starting point for this collection was a stretch material that looks really beautiful when it’s stretched I wondered how that material would look if it was made into a suit and docked into layers, so I told that idea to our pattern maker who turned it into a sample. How to close up the gap between the inside and outside of the pieced-together panels, the extent to which we should use padding to support the forms, the feeling you get when you wear it: it was a series of countless experiments.

Our textile division and production control staff visit factories to get the latest info on fabric development. I put a tremendous amount of time into looking at a lot of materials,but this work is indispensable because we value the creativity that is brought out by chance encounters. The same works not only for woven fabrics, but also attachments and knitwear, too.

I grew up as the youngest of three sisters, and my family always praised me for my good taste when choosing clothes for the entrance ceremony of elementary school, shopping trips and so on. When I was a kid, I didn’t have many chances to choose what I liked, so I’m glad that they praised me for that. I think that’s what first sparked off my interest.

When I was in junior high school and high school, my desire for approval and self-esteem grew, and as I began to face my personality, I was not accustomed to the surrounding environment and social trends. At that time, I was shocked to see the collections of Comme des Garcons and Vivienne Westwood. Back then, I wasn’t so conscious of it, but with the help of my rebellion against conservative women, I was very attracted to the avant-garde clothes made by female designers. On the contrary, I wasn’t interested in clothes made by male designers.

I aspired to become a designer because clothes gave me support to overcome my weaknesses. There is no simpler tool for expressing yourself than by accepting that your personality is different from others’. I think the big advantage of fashion is that minorities can send messages to majority. TOGA’s creativity is not easy, but I hope that people find a new way to see themselves when they’re thinking about how to wear one of my designs – if it could be a positive support that would be a wonderful thing.

I think that there’s a big difference between something being visually easy-to-understand and catchy and something explanatory being catchy and easy-to-understand, and I’m interested in artists who fill the gap. I’m especially interested in female manga artists Natsujikei Miyazaki and Pesuyama Poppy. Natsujikei wrote manga like “Adam to Eve no Rakuen Tsuihou Sareta Kedo…” (Kodansha) and “Anata wa Bun-chan no Koi (Kodansha)”. They’re so interesting I’ve read almost all of them. Pesuyama wrote “Jibun no karada o yurusu made” (Shogakukan), which was deeply interesting. There are many other artists I like, and I’m especially interested in those who are trying to create a better world in a world where various things are happening.

What they both have in common is that they analyze their daily lives very deeply and depict them in detail. Their depiction of trivial matters of the heart is philosophically expressed, but the painting is pop and nostalgic and modern. It’s interesting that there is such a writer’s character and it’s not just documentary.

Unfortunately not at all so far. I wish I could connect a little better just because I really enjoy my life. But I like lending and borrowing books that interest me with my friends. It’s inspiring to have a relationship where you can share your thoughts about how good this book was and how that book wasn’t interesting. Basically, I like radio, mostly for the music. You can find new cool songs you never heard before, and the voices of people who don’t even know your face are strangely worrisome. I’m often surprised and interested in it at first glance, so I think that’s part of my clothing-making process.

I strongly feel a change in the way younger generations think about their purchase decisions. I think that the way of thinking from the past, such as wanting something because a celebrity wore it, or to make look yourself rich, is disappearing at a tremendous pace. The key word in the future is “empathy” for the brand. From now on, it can be said that consumers are choosing designers. In the future, I would like to continue to show the creation that creates empathy while giving a clear message as TOGA.

Although only a limited number of people were invited to the show due to Corona, we were able to approach a lot of people who had never heard of the TOGA brand thanks to the Rakuten “by R” project. By continuing this kind of activity in the future, I hope that something will snare the hearts of those who have seen our collection.

TOGA  2223 AW COLLECTION

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