Brand information / About the designer

── What inspired you to become a fashion designer? Describe developments leading up to the brand launch.

After gaining experience in traditional clothing in London and working in sportswear and product design in Tokyo, designer Sakai launched paratrait with the aim of creating value that can only be created in the modern age, both functionally and visually, by drawing on his two opposite experiences.

── What is the brand’s concept? What do you want to communicate through fashion designing?

By branching out and evolving clothing to create ‘portraits of parallel worlds’, we want to create contemporary portraits that are relevant to this era.

── What is your source of inspiration in creating fashion? What is your process of developing a design concept?

I develop an image from my original experience as a Japanese person, research places, objects and things that I associate with, and create a story as a metaphor for what I want to convey.

── Who are your current stockists (areas, retail formats, etc.)? Describe the typical followers of your brand.

Currently, the company is expanding its wholesale development mainly to leading individual shops in the regions, mainly purchased by local people who really like clothes and professionals in the industry, such as stylists and sales staff.

── Which brands, designers, styles and cultures have had the most impact on your fashion designing, and why?

Alexander McQueen

About 2025 A/W collection

── Why have you chosen Tokyo (Rakuten Fashion Week TOKYO) as the venue for presenting your collection?

The purpose is to make more people aware of the world by communicating the world view in a realistic way.

── What is the concept / image for your brand’s 2025 A/W season?

This time, I went to Kathmandu to research Buddhism, Japanese Shintoism and other cultures that form the basis of current Japanese customs, and used the inspiration I gained there to build a story in the brand’s worldview. I was particularly influenced by the philosophical wisdom of reincarnation and the idea of liberation.

── What is your vision for your show / installation?

Confidential.

Future

── What are your brand’s future outlook and goal?

Since the brand was first established, one of our goals has been to make products in Japan and sell them overseas, so growth in the Japanese market is a prerequisite, but one of our goals is to reach a state where overseas sales exceed Japanese sales in the future.

About TOKYO

── What does Tokyo represent for you?

A city that has too much of everything

── Which parts / sites of Tokyo do you like most? Why?

Hachijo Island

── What are your favorite / recommended shops (of any genres, e.g. fashion stores, homeware stores, food services), facilities and sites?

Casting Higashi Kurume