The Japan Fashion Week Organization has been entrusted with a production area revitalization project by the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry’s Small and Medium Enterprise Agency Management Support Department Start-up and New Business Promotion Section as part of the “model to support the enhancement of sales capabilities of small and medium-sized businesses, such as support to capture the market using regional resources.” It will therefore host the “THIS IS MY PARTNER” project, to be broadcast to the world through the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo, which will be held this upcoming October and March, with a focus on factories and craftsmen of production areas that support the entire textile industry of Japan.

This endeavor will show case the Japanese textile industry both domestically and internationally.

Please do look forward to it.

What is “THIS IS MY PARTNER”?

Japanese designers have transmitted their unique creations and received high acclaim in fashion cities around the world. Behind their creations are the craftsmen of production areas who support the manufacturing process with their advanced techniques. Designers and craftsmen are linked by deep relationships of trust, and the chemistry between them is perfect when making their creations. “THIS IS MY PARTNER” is a project to introduce craftsmen as indispensable partners of designers in their creations.

A total of ten teams of designers, or five teams for each season, will introduce the craftsmen who are their partners in clothes-making using various modes of expression at the collection venues and exhibition venues of the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week TOKYO 2015 S/S to be held this October and the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week TOKYO 2015-16 A/W to be held in March 2015.

 

Objective of this project

In recent years, Japanese fashion brands have been highly acclaimed around the world; however, the manufacturers and factories for fabrics, sewing/processing, materials (buttons, lace, ribbons, accessories, etc.) that support these fashion brands and the technical capabilities of the indispensable craftsmen are not known well enough. This project focuses on the craftsmen who are involved in the textile industry. The objective is for the designers participating in the MBFWT to promote the technical capabilities of these talented craftsmen to the world using various expressions.

Content of activities

PR of craftsmen by designers at the collection venue, etc.
A total of ten teams of designers will introduce their partner craftsmen using various modes of expression at each of the collection venues and exhibition venues at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week TOKYO 2015 S/S and Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week TOKYO 2015-16 A/W, with five teams of designers at each event.

Publication of a special edition of the MBFWT official guidebook
The official Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week TOKYO guidebook, which is distributed each season at the official venues and associated event venues, etc., will be published as a special edition featuring content regarding the “THIS IS MY PARTNER” project such as craftsmen interviews and production area yellow pages.

A special page will be set up on the official MBFWT website
A special webpage for the “THIS IS MY PARTNER” project will also be set up on the official Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week TOKYO website in conjunction with the guidebook. The guidebook will feature digest versions of interviews and production area information, whereas the website will feature the full versions.