ISSEY MIYAKE “A PIECE OF WHAT?”
ISSEY MIYAKE “A PIECE OF WHAT?”
ISSEY MIYAKE A PIECE OF WHAT? [3]
INDEX INTRODUCTION [05] ANALYSIS 1 [07] ANALYSIS 2 [181] BIG IDEA & ANALYSIS 3 [219] ANALYSIS 4, ACTIONS & BUDGET [243] REFERENCES [302] APPENDIX [308]
ISSEY MIYAKE A PIECE OF WHAT? [4]
ANALYSIS 1
biography [08] personality [10] history [12] exhibitions [18] books [24] interviews [30] videos [52] advertising [62] shows [78] first/last iconic mood [99] iconic products [100] collaborations [136] shops [148] iconic people/brand ambassadors [155] CRM [163] CSR [164] PESTEL analysis [166] 5 forces framework [171] annual report [172]
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BIOGRAPHY Issey Miyake is a Japanese fashion designer, born in Hiroshima in 1938. He studied graphic design at Tama Art University. After graduating in 1965, he moved to Paris and enrolled at the Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture Parisienne. He completed apprenticeships with Givenchy and Guy La Roche. In 1970 he founded the Miyake Design Studio in Tokyo, established as a manufacturing, wholesale and retail company for women’s clothing. In 1973 Miyake displayed his own independent collection in a Paris fashion show and developed the layered and wrapped look that became his trademark. Soon after that Bloomingdales from New York City made a section for his “East meets West” collection, mostly T-shirts dyed with Japanese tattoo designs and quilted coats using his famous sashiko technique. In 1993 Issey Miyake introduced his famous Pleats Please collection. Garments made from polyester jersey memory holding fabric. He used a pioneering technique to pleat the clothes so that they retain their form no matter how the wearer moves. This is also the year the Bao Bao bag was launched. In 1998 Issey Miyake finally unveils his “A Piece of Cloth” (A-POC) collection which he had been working on this for the past ten years. This is a collection that can be customized by the wearer using cut out fabrics. There was a long tube of cloth and it was up to the customer to cut and shape it how they pleased. It was revolutionary because it started with a single piece of thread and resulted in fabric, texture and a fully finished set of clothing in a single process. Miyake had created a computer programmed machine that weaved and knitted this piece of cloth. In 1999 Miyake handed over the design of men’s and women’s ready to wear line to Naoki Takizawa to free up his time and concentrate on other collections. In 2007 the Reality Lab was established, with eleven members to dedicate their time to creating new ways of making. This lab focuses on new designs that are connected to society. Focuses on the development of environmentally friendly materials that recycle and recreate new ones. Their first release from the lab was the 132. 5 collection, using only fully recycled polyester material. The lab collaborated with Jun Mitani who developed a software program for the 3D origami structure. In 2012 Yoshiyuki Miyamae was appointed designer for the brand, he had been working alongside Issey Miyake for the past 11 years.
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SHOWS
EAST MEETS WEST, SPRING/SUMMER 1978 Miyake could develop a tradition which was neither Eastern or Western, or in Miyake’s own phrase: “ where East meets West”. East Meets West was a precursor of how wthe society evolved in the 80s.
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A-POC, SPRING/SUMMER 1999 A- POC ( a piece of cloth), developed together with Dai iwarama more than 10 years earlier but launched in 1999. A-POC, as Pleates before, is an operation that inverted ways of thinking about the manufacturing of clothing. This method consisted in using knitting machines furnished with computer programs to make clothing, and it was used even after for the following collections. Miyake’s objective was indeed to limit waste to a minimum during the production process, and to treat all left-over material so that it could be used again in a new product.Insisting that A-POC was an ensemble piece, he refused to imprint his name on that collection. He sold it simply as a long tube of jersey, and it was then up to the consumer to cut and shape it.
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ICONIC PRODUCTS
UKIYO-E An image of kabuki actor Onoe Kikugoro V from the ukiyo-e series Azuma no hana (Flowers of Tokyo) by Toyohara Kunichika.
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1970S:TATTOO (1970/ SS1971)
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1 9 9 0 S : P L E AT S PLEASE
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MINARET Lantern-Shaped Dress, 1995
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ISSEY MIYAKE BODYSUIT Monica Bellucci photographed by Frederic Meylan, 1990.
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ICONIC PEOPLE/BRAND AMBASSADORS IRVING PENN Started their collaboration in 1983. Although Issey Miyake and the legendary photographer Irving Penn came from two different worlds and visions, they were responsible for one of the most iconic collaborations in fashion. Despite the fact that Miyake never came to his photography sessions (nor even Penn did ever go to any Miyake’s show), there is an incredible visual conversation that arose those two artists due to the complete artistic freedom afforded to Penn. The sculptural quality of Miyake’s body images is captured in his pictures- a furrow of pleats transforms a woman into an elegant slinky, or a coat is inflated like an oversize balloon. In fact, Penn noted in the introduction to his 1988 monograph, Issey Miyake: Photographs by Irving Penn: “His design are not fashionable, but women of style are enriched by them and are made more beautiful by them”.
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ANALYSIS 2
vision [182] mission [183] values [184] 3D business model [185] BCG matrix [187] benchmark [189] strategic group map [206] positioning map [209] brand identity prism [212] SWOT analysis [213]
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VISION To explore the different functions of garments and fabrics by implementing new methods to provide to the body with freedom to move without renounce to the fashionable aspect.
ISSEY MIYAKE, BATHING SUIT Photographed by Guy Bourdin for Vogue, 1977.
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MISSION Being a brand that can mix east and west traditions, developing technological and innovative textiles, making garments with the concept of practical fashion.
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BIG IDEA & ANALYSIS 3
concept & big idea [220] 3D business model [228] innovation canvas [231] brand identity prism [234] positioning map [235] SWOT analysis [236]
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WHY A T-SHIRT OR A HOODIE? A t-shirt is one of the most relevant clothing to communicate a message. It is one of the most famous, or maybe the most sold, cloth in the apparel industry. It started to become famous during the ’50’s, thanks to actors such as James Dean, Marlon Brandon or John Wayne, they used to wear t-shirts in their movies. During the ’70’s they started to be worn as an advertising medium to spread ideas and messages. Since the ’80’s it started to reflect the music taste of people or the belonging to a specific community or subculture, representing images from albums or logos from bands. T-shirts today are more than 100 years old and it is still the best seller cloth in the world. This brief introduction wants to explain how this clothing is an essential element in every wardrobe. We have several reasons for why we decided to start from a t-shirt or a hoodie for our project. First of all, as explained before, a t-shirt is an easy, maybe the easiest, channel to spread a message. It is the easiest cloth to sell and the most suitable cloth to cover our target, which has a big focus on younger generations. So the first reason behind our choice is due to increase sales. Giving more visibility to the brand and to find the perfect cloth to reach the community we are referring to. The other main reason behind our choice is that we want to add a commercial side, without being mainstream, to avant-garde. Indeed, as understood by our survey, avant-garde is perceived as something abstract with big difficulties in communication. People do not understand its meaning, and most importantly, even if everybody knows names such as “Comme des Garçons”, or “Yohji Yamamoto”, when they see clothes made by these designers they are not able to recognize who is the designer who creates them. Using a t-shirt to give a new birth to an avant-garde brand will give the possibility to make it more visible, and at the same time the chance to continue sending messages. If a t-shirt could be considered as too basic and an easy choice for an avant-garde brand such as Issey Miyake, we have to consider that the possibilities of creation through a t-shirt are unlimited. One of the most recent and interesting example will justify our choice. Olivier Saillard, the chief curator of the Palais Galliera costume and fashion museum and artistic director of the footwear brand J.M. Weston, launched a project in which he used cotton t-shirts with a cost of 5€ (the shipping costs, as he points out, were often higher than the price of the garment itself), and worked with Lenoir and Axelle Doue to create a 27-piece “Moda Povera” collection, draping and pleating the t-shirts in the same manner as Madame Grès. The t-shirts he made were inside finished like haute couture dresses, with three little red thread cross-stitches to remind the wearer which side is the front of the garment; grosgrain inner waistbands to secure them in place; and
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hand-finished organza panels to stabilize those signature pleats. The collection, which as Saillard points out can be packed in two small suitcases, was presented to an intimate group that included the legendary mannequins Violetta Sanchez, Claudia Huidobro, Christine Bergstrom, and Amalia Vairelli, and the eager retailer Carla Sozzani.
MODA POVERA Olivier Saillard, 2018
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3D BUSINESS MODEL
CONSCIOUS PEOPLE
FREE FLUIDITY
INTERCONNECTED ANGLES
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TARGET: CONSCIOUS PEOPLE Issey Miyake’s new target will be composed of males and females between the age of 25 to 40 years old, with a big focus on the younger generation. We are targeting the European market, so the new target will be living in big european cities such as Berlin, London, Milan and Paris. We are focusing on conscious people, people who are interested in today’s society from every perspective: fashion, art, music, literature and so on. Indeed our target will be a very niche part of the society, people who are actually aware and conscious of society, so they can demonstrate a way of thinking by wearing Issey Miyake. Because of the collaborations that we are doing with young emerging fashion designers, the target has to also be interested in discovering new niche brands that at the same time are related to Issey Miyake’s approach. The new Issey Miyake will not lose its famous and historical practical aspect, so we are continuing to target people who for eg. have travel necessities for work such as people working in the artfields, or more in general people who give importance to practicality. TECHNOLOGY: FREE FLUIDITY Issey Miyake technology will combine two aspects: fluidity (symbolic aspect) and freedom (functional benefit). Due to the new reborn of “a Piece of Cloth” we are developing the concept of contemporary fluidity in the imperfection of the clothes. Something that can be defined as “unfinished” and in continuous transformation, and something which at the same time, could be recognized by the target. We want to do this to give more visibility to avant-garde, continuing to save its abstract point of view. Indeed, we want the target, and in the future a bigger a part of the market, to be able to recognize a cloth made from Issey Miyake, but which will not be perceived as a mainstream phenomenon. On the other hand Issey Miyake will not lose the functional benefit of freedom, expressed by giving the body the elasticity and movement in forms of expression. OCCASION OF USE: INTERCONNECTED ANGLES The occasion of use of the new Issey Miyake will be for both daytime and nighttime. Because of the awareness and intellectualism that it will represent, they are conceived to embody a state of mind, more than something to be worn in a specific time of day. Due to the fact that they can be worn from different sides and angles, they can match different occasions. We are expressing people’s individuality and knowledge, in order to be recognizable in today’s society and fashion system. At the same time we are creating clothes which, starting from a simple t-shirt or a hoodie are able to combine intellectualism with a more commercial side. As said, the clothes will not lose their practical aspect, so they can be easily carried in a luggage while travelling for work. Elasticity is also something that we will not lost, so people can also wear it for sport activities such as for eg. ballet dancing.
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ISSEY MIYAKE Photo: Yuriko Takagi.
INNOVATION CANVAS Key resources
What do you do – Value Proposition
Brand Promise – The Why
How you interact – Customer Relationships
Who you help – Customer Segment
Craftsmanship;
Offer a more fluid image for the brand, allowing more customers to be involved;
Providing a platform for those who want to demonstrate their way of thinking.
Online: On the website; Social media.
Avant garde designers ;
Previous collection; “A Piece of Cloth”; Treated leftover materials to create a new polyester; R & D; Lab;
Research
Cotton.
Collaborations with 3 different designers, showing the multitude of options with APOC;
Offline: Customer service in store; Talking to clients while sampling.
Giving clients the possibility to create the type of clothing they desire;
Male & females 25 - 40 years old. European market. Focusing on intellectuals, who are conscious of society and want to show their creative, expressive side.
Possibility of freedom with the piece of clothing, creatively & practically; Giving avant garde designers more visibility in the market; Giving a platform for the chosen target; An understanding of today’s society. Key partners
Unfair Advantage
How the market knows you & how to deliver
What you give – Cost Structure
What you get – Revenue Streams
Designers; Doublet, Joan Ros Garrofe & Charles Jeffrey;
Fusion between the avant garde designers and Miyake;
of
Social media fluencers such Adrien Missika, Zhen & Olivier Sagazan.
inas; Xu de
Extensive research on materials and technique;
Designing; Production; Transportation; Marketing; Labor training.
Online purchases;
Merchandising the store;
Social media (Instagram, Facebook, Youtube); Promotional videos; Educational Videos; Collaboration with the designers; Use of social media sponsors; WOM; Pop up stores: Sampling in the cities; Posters.
Being the “ father” to these three designers and giving them more visibility.
In store purchases.
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Through Issey Miyake’s blue ocean strategy we will bring education, originality and new communication to put forward avant garde in the industry. We will educate consumers about avant garde by creating collaborations with Iseey Miyake that have a different aesthetic but are still coherent with the brand. We will have promotional videos that will help the consumer understand more the mental process, creation and final product. This collaboration will bring out originality by taking Miyake’s concept of fluidity and creating pieces of clothes that can be used in different ways. We will be promoting this brand differently than most avant garde brands. Avant garde brands don’t have usually have a heavy communication. We will utilize affinity marketing, sampling throughout multiple European cities, posters, pop up stores, educational videos on social media and in the pop-up stores and collaboration books.
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ANALYSIS 4, ACTIONS & BUDGET
segmentation [244] target [260] 8P [264] launch of the one year project [290] budget [298]
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8P PRODUCT
The one year project wants to re-establish the power of collaborations, since the brand in the past years gave a lot of importance to collaborations. The reason behind doing a whole year of collaborations is to give a real relevance to them and visibility to the brand. Starting from the collection “a Piece of Cloth” we want to create a project which will maintain the conceptual and abstract side of avant garde, but which will give more visibility to avant-garde at the same time. The three designers Miyake will collaborate with will be Charles Jeffrey Loverboy, Joan Ros Garrofe and Doublet. They will receive a brief in which they will be asked to create a cloth for the upper part of the body, but at the same time will have to be used as another cloth as well (for eg. a t-shirt which can be wear as a dress too). This project as said before wants to keep the conceptual side of avant garde, indeed the clothes will represent a fluid process which wants to represent the in vane research of the perfect cloth, symbolizing the continuous research of perfection: people struggle their whole life to reach perfection, but perfection is impossible to achieve. Maintaining this abstract side we want to give more concreteness to avant-garde. A t-shirt or a hoodie are the right clothes through which the brand will become more “commercial” without becoming mainstream. Indeed the aim of the project is to give a new birth to the brand, but at the same time to find a solution to the silent approach of avant garde. People are not able to give the name of a specific avant garde designer if they see a cloth made by him. We want to overturn this perception and make people understand at the first sight, that these clothes are made by a collaboration with Issey Miyake. The clothes will re interpret the trend of “Logomania”, but in a personal and more reasoned way. The trend will not be a marketing operation, but it will be used as the signature of the designers and as a way to express their own aesthetic. The clothes will be sold with a catalogue from the designer, in which it will show its approach, aesthetic and previous works. As said before the project will last one year, but every designer will have each have 4 months. In this way we want to give enough visibility to them and enough time to the target to see and learn their aesthetic. Indeed we are targeting people who are naturally interested in Issey Miyake’s approach and so will find an interest in other small designers who have the same approach as Miyake, even if they are not aware these designers exist in the market. We named the project “a Piece of What?” as a reference to the collection “a Piece of Cloth” and to metaphorically represent the aim of the project: a piece of cloth which can have different solutions, something which can be used as a t-shirt, a hoodie, a dress and so on.
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CHARLES JEFFREY LOVERBOY X ISSEY MIYAKE Top.
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CHARLES JEFFREY LOVERBOY X ISSEY MIYAKE Dress.
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JOAN ROS GARROFE X ISSEY MIYAKE Polo shirt.
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JOAN ROS GARROFE X ISSEY MIYAKE Polo shirt with removable sleeves.
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DOUBLET X ISSEY MIYAKE T-shirt.
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DOUBLET X ISSEY MIYAKE T-shirt with removable plastic pieces.
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ISSEY MIYAKE DRESS Ellen Van Schylenburch, 1986.
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