Me & My Itoshiroyohinten Vol.5 -Yoshifumi Higashino (Representative of Rebuilding Center JAPAN)-
We will ask long-time customers of Ishiteshiro Clothing Store to tell us about their favorite items and their own activities.
Name: Tadafumi Azuno, Representative of Rebuilding Center JAPAN
My favorite item: Dark indigo-dyed denim twill (size 3)
Years of use: 3 years
Height: 178cm
---Please introduce yourself and tell us about your work and activities:
My name is Higashino Yuji. I was born in September 1984, and from an early age, I lived in various places around the country, including Osaka, Hyogo, and Fukuoka, due to my parents' work. I went to university in Nagoya, and then moved to Tokyo to get a job. I later quit the company I joined as a new graduate and traveled around the world. After returning to Japan, I became independent and worked as a freelance designer in my mid-twenties. When I was 27, I was given the opportunity to create a hostel called "Nui." in Kuramae, Tokyo, and this year marks about 10 years since I started working in renovation.
Initially, I worked alone, moving around the country from place to place, then I formed a design unit team called " medicala " with my wife for a few years. In 2015, when I went to Portland, Oregon, USA on my honeymoon, I visited the local ReBuilding Center and thought it would be great if there was a place like that in Japan. I contacted the headquarters and founded ReBuilding Center JAPAN the following year in 2016.
Their business involves taking over vacant houses that are being demolished and items that are no longer needed inside the house, which they call "rescue." Based on the philosophy of rescue, they operate a cafe, sell old materials and antiques, and design spaces using vacant houses. Their store in Suwa City is a converted three- storey building that used to be a construction company. There are now more than 10 full-time staff members, most of whom are immigrants. The age range of visitors is wide, from young people to the elderly, and they are thankfully visited by many people from outside the prefecture, including those in the construction industry and those who just love old things.
---Favorite items:
My favorite item is the indigo-dyed denim tatsuke. I wear it so much that the inside pocket is completely torn (lol). I wear it every day. But I take good care of it and don't want to get it dirty, so I take good care of it. It's comfortable to wear, and it's especially easy to move your legs up and down compared to regular denim. I usually go up and down stairs by skipping a step, and that's when I really feel the benefits of tatsuke! (lol) It also makes it easy to go up and down a stepladder. Before I discovered tatsuke, I thought that pants had to be loose or stretchy to be comfortable, so I was very surprised at first that just this straight-cut pattern could make these pants so comfortable. Also, even though they're indigo-dyed, they're also attractive because they barely fade even after three years of wearing them quite frequently.
[TATSUKE] Organic cotton denim/indigo dyed dark
---How did you find out about Ishiteshiro Clothing Store?
Mr. Hirano and I had a mutual acquaintance in Hida who told us about a great place called Itoshiro. There is a clothing store called Itoshiro Clothing Store, and he said that it would be a good match for Livsen, so that's how it started. From there, we started talking about holding an exhibition at our store, and that's when I first visited Itoshiro Clothing Store with my family and staff beforehand. It was midsummer in Itoshiro.
--- A message to Ishiteshiro Clothing Store:
Recently in the fashion industry, perhaps for marketing purposes, words like SDGs and sustainability have been used so much that it's hard to understand what they mean, but I think that Ishiteshiro Clothing Store's strength is that they have been honestly and properly facing these terms since before they became widespread in the world. As something one step ahead becomes the standard, I hope that they will continue to be a brand that inspires other sustainable apparel brands that come later and shows them the right path.
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profile
Tadafumi Azuno
Representative Director of Rebuilding Center JAPAN
Born in 1984. Graduated from the Faculty of Art and Engineering, Nagoya City University. In 2014, he began working with his wife Kanako as the spatial design unit medicala. They have continued to create "good spaces" while living temporarily every few months around the country.
In the fall of 2016, we established ReBuilding Center JAPAN, a recycling shop for building materials, in Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture . Based on the philosophy of "ReBuild New Culture," we aim to pick up the things and culture we want to pass on to the next generation, reconstruct them, and design the landscape of the future in which people can live happily and resiliently.
<Media appearances and awards>
NHK General TV's "Sakidori," TV Tokyo's "Gaia Dawn," NHK General TV's "Salameshi," etc.
Winner of the 2018 Ministry of the Environment Good Life Award Environmental Regional Branding Award
2018 Passive House Japan Eco House Award Renovation Award 2019 Good Design Award Best 100 2020 DIA TOP 100
ReBuilding Center JAPAN HP: http://rebuildingcenter.jp/
Instagram (personal): https://www.instagram.com/t_azu/
Instagram (ReBuilding Center JAPAN): https://www.instagram.com/rebuildingcenterjp/