Straight out from Tokyo Spring 2024 Fashion Week, Designer Shinya Kozuka’s broderie anglaise shirts, brocade pajamas, tinselly cardigans, and silk bombers shine in the Yves Klein blue under the full moon that inspired him.

How did SHINYAKOZUKA start and how has it developed up to now?

After graduating from Central Saint Martins, the owner of the showroom in Paris emailed and recommended me to start the career of my brand. Before receiving the email, I didn’t intend to have my own label. But I felt that this opportunity pushed my possibilities, and I should get this chance. Therefore, I decided to start SHINYAKOZUKA. For the first few seasons, I was paddling my own canoe. It was not going well, especially business wise. From AW17, my business partner joined and we’ve gained stockists and gradually the scale of our company and the brand have been developed.

Have you stuck to the initial concept or has it evolved down the years?

In my mind, fashion means not only garments. Fashion means to draw scenery. People, objects, atmosphere, smells, sounds, etc., and garments. When these factors are included within the same package, fashion is formed.

When I get inspiration, I draw and paint an imaginary picture. This fantasy shows the scenery of the next direction. For the above reasons, I call it ‘picturesque scenery’.

Since SS22, we’ve done runway shows every season. Runway shows allow me to showcase the scenery of the season physically.

Therefore, I hope to keep doing runway shows, to get people to understand my attitude.

What has the biggest challenge been?

One of our current goals is to join the Paris Fashion Week and do runway shows as scheduled. I would like to share my vision and attitude with people all around the world.

What’s the role of collaborations to you and your brand?

I always discover our unexpected side through collaborations with their certain skills and the heritage. It is always a happy and enjoyable experience. I think that SHINYAKOZUKA has expanded its creativity by virtue of collaborations. Thus, I always keep in mind to show their unexpected side through our creation for a win-win business.

What’s behind your SS24 collection?

The collection is entitled Wonderful Wander. It means a wonderful stroll, a phrase that still doesn't quite capture the story behind it. What I want to convey is not just the beauty of walking, but the desire for each of these scenes to enrich our lives. Therefore, with the hope that they are depicted as they are and that the joy and excitement are shared and cherished, I wrote "wonderful wander” and translated it in my own way. I enjoy taking walks, often with a beer in hand. In my youth days, I used to take the last train to Kobe or Kyoto, and walk all the way back to my hometown of Osaka until morning. I still find great pleasure in walking through shopping streets and residential areas, bypassing beautiful landscapes and famous landmarks, and unexpectedly encountering ordinary scenes with a strong beauty in them. In my mind, these scenes naturally transform into a theatrical performance. Within limited information, I envision deeper stories. It feels like reading poetry, imagining the scenes behind them. Although I no longer have the luxury of half-day strolls like before, when I feel inclined, I walk home from the office, or I get off at a station slightly farther from my nearest one and walk home. During these walks, I find myself lost in thoughts, refining ideas. It's a relaxing and delightful time that flows so smoothly. In my mind, it's like a blank canvas where words and images come to life, overlapping with the ordinary scenery of residential areas, creating a sense of whimsical landscapes,

assisted by the beer, of course. So, for me, the word "street" might be akin to "fantasy."

During my strolls I discover so many things. I've always believed that the backside holds more beauty, that richness lies in hidden places, which were an inspiration fo rmy SS24 collection.

How can a brand be intrinsically linked to a culture and visual identity and at the same time speak to a global, universal audience?

As I write above, I cherish drawing scenery and imaginary drawing. They don’t have languages, yet they convey what I think. Words are quite restrictive. On the other hand, scenery and pictures can have a conversation worldwide. And they don’t say just one answer, therefore people can have varying interpretations.

What do you think it takes to be noticed by the fashion system nowadays?

‘Sustainability’ has become a common word nowadays. Many people have rethought the environment and the role of fashion. So, I think that it is not bad. I hope that the surrounding fashion makes a livable world step by step.

But we still make the collection twice a year at the least. This speed is too fast! If this goes on, brands become the existence of consumption and designers will be used up!