{"id":9959,"date":"2026-04-22T11:03:03","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T11:03:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/9959\/"},"modified":"2026-04-22T11:03:03","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T11:03:03","slug":"soshiotsuki-is-japans-new-master-tailor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/9959\/","title":{"rendered":"Soshiotsuki Is Japan\u2019s New Master Tailor"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fashion has long heralded the return of the suit. We\u2019ve seen models sauntering down the catwalks in them and read endless articles about a tailoring resurgence. But what will it take to peel the twentysomething out of his jeans and trainers and get him in a shirt and tie? The answer could be Soshi Otsuki<\/a>, the Japanese menswear designer and founder of Soshiotsuki<\/a>, who took home this year\u2019s LVMH Prize<\/a> with his elegant suiting inspired by Tokyo\u2019s salarymen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think suits could be worn more casually, almost like sweatshirts,\u201d says the designer. \u201cI haven\u2019t quite managed to do that myself yet, but it\u2019s something I\u2019d like to try in practice.\u201d We spoke just before his show at Pitti Uomo in January<\/a>. His guest spot at the Florentine men\u2019s trade show was his first ever catwalk show \u2013 he\u2019d unveiled his collections previously via pared-back lookbooks that looked as if they were shot in a bygone era. \u201cPitti has such a long history and many of the designers I\u2019ve admired have shown there,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s a stage that every menswear designer dreams of presenting on.\u201d<\/p>\n

The collection, applauded by critics, included great suits, and plenty of them. They were joined by buttery leather blousons, trench coats and oversized knits in dusty greens and terracotta.<\/p>\n

from left: Alfredo wears SOSHIOTSUKI and Pascal wears SOSHIOTSUKI<\/p>\n

Otsuki is inspired by Japanese relationships with Western dress. A key mood is always the country\u2019s 1980s bubble era, where inner-city businessmen would be dressed head-to-toe in suits from Europe. \u201cThe fact that the DNA of Italian brands from that era flowed into Japan and evolved uniquely through Japanese interpretation fascinated me. Since I loved that style, I felt it was something I could naturally connect with.\u201d<\/p>\n

His suits, cut with the perfect amount of slouch, have been compared to the early Armani<\/a> years, when the fashion maestro revolutionised menswear with his relaxed greige tailoring. Asked about what drew him to Mr Armani\u2019s work, Otsuki says: \u201cI simply felt it was elegant. After gaining more knowledge as I grew older, I understood that the softness, the materials used and many other factors contributed to that sense of elegance.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Italian tailoring is constructed around the drape that suits Western physiques, Otsuki \u201csometimes creates patterns that generate similar drape from the slight gaps that occur when Italian suits are adapted to the thinner frames of Japanese bodies,\u201d he says. Seeing Tokyo\u2019s businessmen commuting through the city has had a profound impact on his work. \u201cFashion is often dismissed as a frivolous industry, yet suits are accepted without question as deeply social garments. What we call \u2018salaryman style\u2019 embodies that passive, distinctly Japanese mindset, which I find fascinating.\u201d<\/p>\n

from left: Yiming, Li and Juneyong wear SOSHIOTSUKI<\/p>\n

Though when he was a child, his earliest style awakening was the well-dressed characters depicted in popular manga comics. He was born in Chiba, next to Tokyo. His immediate family wasn\u2019t in creative work. His father worked in construction and his mother was a homemaker. \u201cHowever, my paternal grandmother was a certified knitting instructor, my maternal grandmother was a dressmaker and my uncle was a designer, so clothing was present within my extended family.\u201d His mother liked to sew and, in childhood photos, you can often see Otsuki wearing a corduroy suit she made. \u201cThat was probably my first suit,\u201d says the designer. \u201cAs far as I can remember, though, the first was a grey suit I wore at my elementary school graduation. I remember jokingly wrapping the tie around my head and pretending to be a drunk salaryman.\u201d<\/p>\n

The designer\u2019s serious interest in tailoring wouldn\u2019t come until he was in high school. \u201cUntil then, I dressed casually, but when I bought my first jacket with lapels and started wearing it as everyday clothing, I felt an exciting sense of growing up.\u201d He would go on to study menswear at Tokyo\u2019s esteemed Bunka Fashion College<\/a>, as well as attending Coconogacco<\/a> fashion school. \u201cAt Bunka, I learned patternmaking and sewing. At Coconogacco, I learned everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

He launched his brand in 2015 and, a year later, after just two collections, made it to the LVMH Prize semi-finals. \u201cIn 2016, very few Japanese brands had been nominated, so I felt satisfied just being selected.\u201d Returning again to the prestigious award for emerging talent, \u201cI entered with the determination to make it to the finals.\u201d<\/p>\n

from left: Kiwoong, Gamal and Timilehin wear SOSHIOTSUKI and Wanjie wears SOSHIOTSUKI<\/p>\n

Despite his nerves, Otsuki says he enjoyed the award process. For all the people he met during the experience, it was Liren Shih<\/a>, the business partner and boyfriend of British designer Steve O Smith<\/a> \u2013 who took home the Karl Lagerfeld Prize \u2013 who he grew closest to. \u201cLiren had actually modelled for Soshiotsuki when we were nominated back in 2016. It was a real surprise [to see him again].\u201d<\/p>\n

He plans to use the \u00a3350,000 prize money to strengthen the brand\u2019s infrastructure. He hopes to grow to a scale where he can stage two catwalk shows a year. \u201cThe LVMH prize gave me confidence to know that the subtle nuances of Japanese sensibility, which I thought might be hard to communicate in the West, were truly appreciated,\u201d says Otsuki. He\u2019s already levelling up. In December, the designer unveiled a collaboration with Zara<\/a>. The collection, titled A Sense of Togetherness, was inspired by the clothes his mum made for him when he was a child. An elegant taste level, passed down from one generation to the next.<\/p>\n

Taken from 10 Men Issue 63 \u2013 CLASSIC, CRAFT, NOSTALGIA \u2013 out NOW. Order your copy\u00a0here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

SUITS YOU<\/p>\n

Photographer LOCAL ARTIST
Text PAUL TONER
Models YIMING REN at Yu Agency, LI HAOYU and WANJIE GAO at Independent Model Management, JUNYEONG BAEK at D\u2019Management, KIWOONG NAM and TIMILEHIN OWOLABI at Elite Milan, AKITSUGU TOMINAGA at Exiles Models, DARE SULEMANA at Ford Models, JOE BOTTOMER at Monster Management, PASCAL THULIN at Fashion Model Management, SAMUEL WILLIAMSON at Soul Artist Management, GAMAL at Morfosi Milano and ALFREDO<\/p>\n

from left: Akitsugu, Dare, Joe, Samuel and Kiwoong wear SOSHIOTSUKI<\/p>\n