HUEWhen was it . It was pretty early, wasn't it?

MINAMI. we've had them at "The Bridge" since 2011. That was shortly after we started Ebisen.

HUEKo-chan, who was the manager at that time, was originally good friends with Katsumi, and it was when he told me that "there are some badass skaters here. I am not the type of person who usually says things like that, but he said, "They are really great people, and I want to promote them. Can we put them in our store?" He said, "Yes.

MINAMIWhat year did you start working on "The Bridge"?

HUE2005.

MINAMISo, you and I have known each other since 2005. At that time, I was working part-time at "Arktz" in Shibuya, and we had many mutual friends, so Ko-chan used to come there often. He was very fashionable even then. So I started talking to him, "Where are those clothes from? He told me that he was the manager of a store called "Bridge" right there, and that was the brand they carried. I went to Bridge after that, and that was my first encounter with "Deluxe. So it was that long ago (laughs).

HUEYes, I did. And I kept looking at the clothes of "EBISEN" while handling them in the store. I thought they were doing interesting graphics.

HUEFor example, we originally included sneakers from Vans, and things like that. Also, when Ko-chan went abroad, he would find interesting things. Ko-chan was a skater, so he was the one who ended up adding the skate color to "Bridge.

MINAMIYes, that's right. Koh and HUE were featured in the show. When I first started, I think it was because it was in a cool store called "Bridge" in Tokyo that "EBISEN" looked good. Other than that, there were only skate stores, so there was no expansion in the fashion field until then.

MINAMI. To be honest, I didn't calculate how it would look like. But it was very natural for me to have it placed on the "bridge," and afterwards, friends around me said, "You have it on the bridge, don't you? I realized how influential ...... was (laughs).

HUEThanks (laughs).

MINAMIThe market was different, so I had no idea about it (laughs).

MINAMIYes, that's right. I've known Ko for a long time, and I've learned a lot from him. Oh, and I just want to say this, the clothes at [Ebisen] are influenced by 120% Deluxe.

HUE(Laughter).

MINAMITo be honest, in the beginning, I went to the bridge and said, "Oh, I can make something like this," and I took it all down (laughs). (Laughs.) And I did it semi-authoritatively. I would say, "Excuse me, can we do this too? I went to HUE-kun and Ko-chan every time to ask for advice, and I learned every day (laughs).

HUENot at all (laughs). (Laughs.) The presence of "EBISEN" clothes in our store made it more skate-oriented, which was interesting. I thought it would be great to have such a chemical reaction because they are real skaters.

MINAMIWe started with the question, "How do you make clothes? We start from the point of "How are clothes made? From there, we look at every stitch in Deluxe's clothes. We would look at each stitch and see how it was different from what we had tried to do (see ......). And they were totally different (laughs). (Laughs.) I would ask Ko-chan about it every time. He would tell me, "Katsu-chan, you can't do it like this.

HUE(Laughter).

MINAMIThe E-9 is the iconic swing-top model of Ebisen, and it is based on the famous "G-9" by Baracuta. We were originally inspired by a collaboration between Deluxe and Baracuta, and we rearranged it in our own way, and that was the beginning of Ebisen's clothing line.

MINAMI. I would like to strongly say that it just so happens that we have had a long-standing relationship. Actually, I wanted to be the first to collaborate with Ebisen on the deluxe version. But the timing of the collaboration was not right.

HUEWe've been talking about those things for a long time. . I think we started talking about the idea of this collaboration about a year ago.

MINAMINo, it was earlier. It was before we started working with adidas.

HUEOr earlier. So, gradually, we thought it would be a good idea to do a capsule collection of some sort, and we talked about it a lot, and this timing came about.

MINAMIAt first, I asked HUE for advice. I asked him, "Since you've been ripping off our clothes, can you do something official for us?

HUEThat's right (laughs). Our office location changed, and we were closer to each other, so it was easier to talk to each other.

MINAMIWhen I met HUE for the first time, I was very nervous. I was like, "Oh my God, I'm sorry" (laughs).

HUEOriginally, we had a haori in the "deluxe" inline line, and Katsumi liked it. Katsumi-kun liked it and said, "Let's do this. Then we started thinking about how to update it, and what items would go with it. What items would go with it?

HUEI think that "EBISEN" has this kind of Japanese-Western blend, and I think that they incorporate the best of Japan into their hardcore skating. When I thought about what Deluxe could do when working with them, I felt that quality and such would be the answer. At first, I suggested a design that looked like an ukiyo-e woodblock print or something like that, but since I had already worked with the original artists, I felt that it would not be a good idea if there was any overlap.

HUEYes, it was. I thought it would be interesting to create something with an oriental atmosphere in this era, and since I don't think "deluxe" had that kind of image, I thought it would be fresh in that sense. And they said they would leave the apparel to us, so I guess that's how this collection started.

HUEI remember when (Tony) Alva's skate team used to dress up in all black, wearing riders, and it was cool. I told Minami about it, and he said, "Wouldn't it be nice to have this kind of atmosphere? I told Mr. Minami about it, and he thought it would be a good idea to have this kind of atmosphere. I myself have been wearing black for a while (laughs). (Laughs.) Usually, Ebisen uses more colors and is more graphical.

MINAMIThat's right. I was wearing Deluxe clothes before I started "Ebisen. I was asked by skaters around me, "Where are those clothes from? I was asked by skaters around me, "Where are those clothes from? The quality of Deluxe's clothes is clearly different from other skate brands.

MINAMIOf course, I wear such things, too. I liked to combine them with "deluxe.

MINAMII don't feel that way at all. If I didn't have the money, I would do so, and if I could wear something nice, I wouldn't refuse it. I think all skaters have that kind of casual feeling.

MINAMIYes, yes. Suddenly they become thin and so on. Well, that's the lamest thing I've ever seen (laughs). (Laughs.) I'm a bit twisted. I don't want to dress the same as many other skaters, or, to put it another way, I always have a sense of wanting to outdo them. There are skaters who always dress the same, but I can't do that because I am in the business of individuality.

HUEThe special-order haori that Hinan is wearing right now, he has been wearing the inline one for a long time, and I received his comments such as, "I want to make the silhouette bigger," or "Let's make it a size that is easier to action.

It was interesting to be able to express shapes that were difficult to express in our inline line by passing them through the filter of "Ebisen". Even shirts and T-shirts are made in "Ebisen size" this time, and the patterns are different from those of our inline line.

HUEOf course I am happy. . whether it is on the street or in the park. I went to an image visual shoot with Minami the other day, and it was really cool to see real skaters skating in these outfits.

MINAMI." The young skaters from "Ebisen" were used as models.

HUEIt was interesting because they were so realistic and different from the fashion models we usually photograph. When we put clothes on them, they would clearly say, "I don't like this" (laughs). (Laughs). They have their own style, and I like that.

MINAMI(Laughs) . This collaboration has really come naturally, hasn't it? . I am glad that it started with the one-sided love and respect of the "Mere Old Man". No, it's true, you know? (laughs).

HUEThanks (laughs).

MINAMII'm extremely grateful. As for ourselves, we have not changed at all, and I think we will continue to do so in the future. I think the current movement will probably be over in a year or two, but I am simply grateful that the trend is coming.

MINAMI. yes, it has been going on since 2005. It just happens to be the way it is now. Skateboarders have always been skateboarders.

HUE. I would never have been able to make a board (deck) if I had not worked with Ebisen. Even if we could do it technically, it would be a poser, or a fake. That is why we never did it, and I thought it was meaningless to do so.

MINAMII really want to tell people who see this collection that we have a long relationship with each other.

HUEYes, that's right. We have been talking seriously about these things for a long time, and not just about "skating and fashion. I was very happy when you said earlier that you wanted to collaborate with me in the beginning. I think EBISEN is very popular nowadays.

MINAMINo, that's not true. We basically do everything only with our friends. To be honest, we get a lot of offers for collaboration from trading companies that we don't know much about, but we ignore them all at the first e-mail. But we ignore all of them at the first e-mail (laughs).

HUE(Laughs). For example, it would be meaningless if we collaborated, but did not usually hang out together, or if the collaboration ended up being a one-time relationship. This time, there was really no pressure, and it came about naturally. If it looks good, that's probably because of that.

MINAMIWe have the deepest relationship. I felt like I was finally able to give something back (laughs). (laughs) . I thought this would not be rude.