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Kenzo

Kenzo is a luxury fashion house founded by Takada Kenzo in the mid 1960s. To learn more about this brand and the influence on mens fashion, please click the link.

Kenzo is one of Japan's most well known fashion labels that was founded by Takada Kenzo in 1964. From an early age Takada Kenzo showed an interest in fashion and in 1958, at the age of 25, he joined Bunka Fashion College in Tokyo. After earning his degree he decided to move to Paris to be closer to the heart of fashion.

Without any financial support from his family he struggled to establish himself. Initially he worked as a freelance designer selling sketches of his ideas. In addition he created his own designs from scrap fabric he bought at flee markets. The limited availability of fabrics inspired ideas to combine different materials into one design.

His success didn't start until 1970. It was the year in which he held his first fashion show followed by opening his own boutique called "Jungle Jap". In the same year one of his models also appeared on the cover of ELLE magazine. Kenzo didn't launch his first mens collection until 1983.

Kenzo is most known for melting different cultures into one design. He himself was born in Israel, studied and lived in Japan, and worked in Paris. Kenzo said in 1978, "It pleases me when people say I have influence. But I am influenced by the world that says I influence it. The world I live in is my influence." After a 30 year long career in fashion Takada Kenzo retired in 1999. He sold the company to LVMH - one of the world's largest luxury goods conglomerates.