Japan news and archive

Zara opens flagship in Osaka with Japan's first Zacaffè

Madrid – Zara, the leading fashion chain of the Inditex group, is looking to Asia and strengthening its presence in Japan with the opening of a new flagship store in Osaka. The establishment is filled with nods to local culture. A key feature is the inclusion of the first Zacaffè coffee shop that the chain has launched in the country. Located in...

Retail

Japanese convenience store chain Family Mart opens first clothing store in Tokyo

Japanese supermarket chain Family Mart, which also offers clothing, operates over 15,000 stores nationwide. On September 1, 2025, it opened its first store dedicated exclusively to its ‘Convenience Wear’ segment, spanning 62 square metres. The line was developed in 2016 with designer Hiromichi Ochiai, who also founded the Japanese brand...

Retail

Ecoalf strengthens its international business with new store in Japan

Madrid – Ecoalf, the Spanish fashion brand founded and led by Javier Goyeneche, has been at the forefront of sustainable fashion since its launch in 2012. It is expanding its retail network with the opening of a new flagship store in Japan. This country stands out as one of its key markets, and following this opening, Ecoalf now has five stores...

Featured

Fashion

20 years on: A brief history of Tokyo’s fashion week

As the 20th edition of Tokyo Fashion Week begins to wrap up, it seems an apt time to look back on the evolution of Japan’s leading fashion event and how it has been reshaped over its lifespan. This season, under the theme ‘Be The Seam That Connects The World - JFW 20 + 20’, the fashion week wished not only to pay tribute to its 20-year history,...

Retail|In Pictures

Calvin Klein to open largest lifestyle store in Tokyo

American designer brand Calvin Klein Inc., a subsidiary of PVH Corp., is continuing its global retail expansion with the opening of its largest lifestyle store in Tokyo, Japan, designed in a one-of-a-kind concept. The new global flagship store, opening on August 29, is located at 4-31-10, Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, in the heart of Harajuku, Tokyo....

Fashion

Japan Fashion Week to celebrate 20 years with forward-looking Rakuten FWT

The Japan Fashion Week Organisation (JFWO) is celebrating its 20th anniversary for the spring/summer 2026 season, and with it will come a future-orientated edition of Rakuten Fashion Week Tokyo (FWT). This season, both the fashion week’s visual theme – ‘The Future Doesn’t Appear Out of Nowhere’ – as well as its overall theme – ‘Be the seam that...

People

Founder of Japan’s The Soloist to step down from creative helm

Takahiro Miyashita has revealed his intention to step down from the creative helm of TheSoloist, the brand he founded in 2010. The Japanese designer announced in a post on Instagram that the autumn/winter 2025 collection, entitled ‘The Black -And- White Realism’, will be his last for the label. In the statement, Miyashita said: “15 years on, the...

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Business

Asia holds the thread: Regional textile powers reinvent strategies amid global slowdown

While 2024-2025 financial results show a slowdown in consumption in several Asian countries – particularly for luxury groups like LVMH – the global textile sector continues to rely on the region. Several indicators from the first half of 2025 confirm Asia’s central role in global value chains. Between export growth, structural adjustments,...

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Business

EU and Japan agree on closer cooperation

Japan and the European Union (EU) aim to further strengthen their cooperation in the areas of economic security, trade and defence. For this purpose, both sides launched a "Competitiveness Alliance" at a summit meeting in Tokyo. "We will expand our cooperation on increasing the resilience of supply chains and reducing strategic dependencies," a...

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Business

Trump announces 'massive' trade agreement with Japan, citing reciprocal tariffs

President Donald Trump has announced a "massive" trade agreement with Japan, as stated on his platform Truth Social. Trump indicated that the two nations have agreed upon "reciprocal" tariffs of 15 percent, a reduction from his previous demand of 25 percent. This announcement reportedly led to a sharp rise in the Tokyo stock market. Trump...

Retail

Klättermusen opens first store in Osaka, Japan

Swedish mountaineering brand Klättermusen, known for its premium ready-to-wear clothing catering to expeditions, hiking, and skiing, as well as backpacks and accessories, has opened its first store in Osaka, 25 years after entering the Japanese market. Located in the heart of Shinsaibashi at 4-7-11, Minami-Semba, Chuo, the store spans 830 square...

Retail|In Pictures

In Pictures: Guess Jeans opens first Asian flagship store in Tokyo

Guess Jeans has opened its first Asian flagship store in the fashion-centric neighbourhood of Harajuku, Tokyo. The opening of the four-storey location comes as part of wider expansion plans in Japan, currently being led by director of new business, Nicolai Marciano. To celebrate this next phase of global expansion, a series of local events...