KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM TOKYO FASHION WEEK SS25: PART ONE

All images featured on this article are courtesy of Rakuten Fashion Week Tokyo.

Tokyo Fashion Week Spring Summer 2025, sponsored by e-commerce giant Rakuten, was held on different venues across the city on September 2nd to 9th, 2024. While it’s not on the usual fashion circuit of September each year (NYC, London, Milano and Paris), this event has become one of the most important when it comes to the latest trends in both high fashion and street style, because of the original, fearless looks in the runways and streets of Tokyo alike.

In this three part series I will do a deep dive into the best collections of Tokyo Fashion Week in my opinion. These aren’t necessarily the most viral ones or come from the most experienced brands, but they are the ones that had the most interesting, innovative and relevant elements for the industry’s zeitgeist.

MARCUS COVINGTON

This up-and-coming brand had their first TFW this year. With Kazutoshi Marcos Ishikawa at its creative helm, it was founded on May 2024 with a mostly genderless approach, always keeping in mind the importance of exploring and combining different, contrasting fabrics in a single look, such as lace with latex and cotton with sheer lurex.

This was an excellent debut for Marcus Covington in which the brand showcased its unique interpretation of contemporary Japanese fashion staples, such as layering and oversized shapes, in fabrics and colors beyond the classic monochromatic looks.

MEAGRATIA

Takafumi Sekine’s brand, one of the TFW veterans with over 12 years of experience under its belt, presented their latest collection on a fully digital format, pushing preconceptions that only in-person runway shows can attract significant attention in the industry.

With genderless garments that have a slightly more masculine touch, meagratia explored the experimental possibilities that denim can offer in its many hues, along with visible, lightly unfinished stitching. Other outstanding details were monochrome ombré fabrics, tailored jackets and hoodies with irregular prints for a final look that was urban, effortless and formal, all at the same time.

MITSURU OKAZAKI

Okazaki’s collection for the SS25 season offered an unmistakable contrast between severe looks in predominantly dark tones (black, white and navy) with slightly somber details that included bright red prints simulating blood over white garments, and easy to wear, comfy fits that also included irregular cuts, open zippers on multiple areas of the clothes and a deconstructed vibe throughout the entire collection.

All set with a soundtrack that included heavy rain sounds and models carrying red balloons as an optimistic, a bit childish touch, Mitsuru Okazaki showcased a work that, though minimalistic in appearance, is in fact incredibly complex and relevant not only to fashion, but to the current state of the world.

52TENBO+

One of the most outstanding brands on this version of TFW, which also debuted this time around. Unlike many of the creators that participated in this edition, 52tenbo+ used a very loud, almost psychedelic, color selection, and most of the models on this runway show were plus-sized or had body shapes that don’t fit the common idea of what a model for this sort of events should look like. It’s very likely that 52tenbo+’s show was the only one on TFW SS25 that focused on body diversity.

52tenbo+’s universe is fantastic, colorful, joyful, for all ages and bodies, with oversized silhouettes that can be adapted to everyone. This brand, the child of Yasokichi Konishi and Takafumi Tsuruta’s creative partnership, proved a very strong interest in making sustainable fashion by using upcycled fabrics, on clothes such as vests made of vintage neckties. Bright color blocks, patchwork in contrasting hues and some references to antique Japanese dressmaking techniques with some looks inspired by traditional yukata shapes.