Hello everyone. This is Yoshida from milestone.
Over the past four months, I've shared my personal stories about trail running and my work, and receiving feedback from readers has truly encouraged me.
With that encouragement, I'd like to write about something I love this time: "clothes" (not fashion). This topic connects to my philosophy about clothing, which guides me when planning apparel products at milestone, so I'd be very happy if you could bear with me without looking too bored. (Laughs)
※For those of you who read Tell Me! Milestone, you might already sense my rather particular attachment to clothes, right?
My first conscious experience with clothing dates back to when I was a slightly chubby upper elementary school student.
It started when a girl I liked rejected me, even though I hadn't confessed, saying, "I don't like you because your clothes are uncool, Yoshida-kun." By the way, at that time, I was thoughtlessly wearing things like ochre-colored top and bottom sets, so she was not to blame. (Laughs)
When I entered junior high, I, like many middle-aged men of my generation, meticulously checked the outfits of idols like Takuya Kimura and Hamachan, devoured magazines like Boon, and delved deep into the world of vintage clothing.
As a high school student, I became even more obsessed with vintage clothes. I saved the 500 yen I got for school lunch, enduring soccer practice on an empty stomach, and on weekends, I would go to my favorite vintage store to get vintage T-shirts and the like.
I had planned to become a vintage clothing dealer after graduating high school, but my parents strongly opposed it, so I went to university. At university, I spent most of my allowance and part-time job earnings on vintage clothes and American casual wear, and I focused my job search solely on the apparel industry. After joining a children's clothing company, it went exactly as I wrote in the back issues. (Laughs)
During that time, two things changed my perception of clothing, triggered by experiences while working in the international business division.
The first was that "every piece of clothing has a background and a reason for its material and shape."
If you don't understand what it means to wear an Oxford button-down shirt on the East Coast of America, or what school or organization the pattern on your striped tie represents, you can inadvertently convey unintended information about yourself abroad, which has caused me many moments of awkwardness. (It's like Westerners wearing T-shirts with kanji they don't understand.)
I also realized that each piece of clothing has a purpose, and each detail (stitching, buttons, cutting, etc.) exists to achieve that purpose. Conversely, I started noticing clothes that disregarded their purpose.
And second, and this might sound a bit nostalgic, I realized the importance of dressing appropriately for "TPO (Time, Place, and Occasion)," and that ultimately, it's about showing respect to others.
When I had a business meeting with a top executive at a department store in America, they were embarrassed and said, "You are truly dressed 'correctly,' and I deeply regret wearing a casual suit today." I also realized that rather than just taste, understanding the rules and framework of clothing, and then playing within those boundaries, is what makes it interesting.
Once I somewhat understood these aspects through experience, I wanted to study them more systematically, so I devoured various books, including foreign ones.
After studying, when I looked at my closet again, I started to find clothes like hunting jackets and fishing vests, where each detail coexists for its respective purpose, very beautiful.
This is the reason why I wrote "clothes" (not fashion) at the beginning. What interests me is delving into and appreciating the background of a garment's color, material, and shape. When I do this, I naturally gravitate towards basic, long-loved items, and as a result, I naturally drift away from trends.
At that time, while discovering the joy of mountaineering, I also encountered apparel and gear specialized for various outdoor activities, and I became completely engrossed.
Many middle-aged men probably cherish this, keeping it on their bookshelves at home; Popeye's "Yuhou Daizen" from over ten years ago fueled my love for gear.
It's truly a strange twist of fate that Jerry Ukai, who created that cover and whom I'd been a fan of since then, would hold a solo exhibition at our workplace ten years later.
I've written at length about my earliest experiences with clothes as an elementary and junior high school student, all the way to my current feelings about them. Next time, I'd like to share a little about how I incorporate these experiences into milestone's apparel and gear when I'm creating products.
Any feedback, opinions, or topics you'd like me to cover would be greatly encouraging.
Until next month, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye.
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