Genealogy of "É
Final L'ECHOPPE Conceptor
Keiji Kaneko

Nakamuro：Well, Mr. Kaneko , thank you for your time today.

Kaneko:Yes , please.

Nakamuro：To briefly explain the process again, there was a project called "Clothing Seekers: The Genealogy of 'É'" that was serialized seven years ago. It was a project in which all the creators that HOUYHNHNM's thought were interesting came from "EDIFICE," and I, who also came from "EDIFICE," served as the interviewer. There have been three people who have participated in this project so far, including Yuhi Ozaki, Keijiro Komori, and Shuji Itai, all of whom were just beginning to make their mark.

Kaneko:I see.

Nakamuro：And now we have the real star of the show, Mr. Kaneko, who was probably the best embodiment of "edifice" at that time. Once again, I would like to ask him about the history of those days. I believe that what makes Kaneko-san what he is today is the accumulation of his past experiences.

Kaneko:Yes (laughs).

Nakamuro：Now, I'm going to ask you out of the blue, Kaneko-san, what did you do before you joined "Edifice"?

Kaneko:When I graduated from high school, I naturally thought about my career path, but since my only hobby was clothes, I had no intention of going to college. . So I decided to look for a job at a clothing store that was advertised on the school's job board, and I entered a major mass retailer.

Nakamuro：." It's not "BAYCREW'S (Edifice's operating parent company)," is it?

Kaneko:. It's not the same. . And my sense of fashion from then to now actually hasn't changed that much, but the place where I started working is a mass retailer, so I didn't fit in anymore after the second day or so.

Nakamuro：Isn't it early? (Laughter)

Kaneko:Yes, it was early (laughs). (Laughs.) I entered the company because I had to find a job anyway. But I had talked with my father and said, "Let's wait for about four years," so I really did work there for about four years.

Nakamuro：Then you persevered.

Kaneko:Yes . And after 4 years, when I was 22 years old, I left the company. At the time, I liked vintage clothing stores and mod culture, so I was not interested in stores that were not part of that culture or vintage clothing stores. Also, I didn't really understand what a select store was. So I didn't know about "BEAMS" or "SHIPS" or anything like that.

Nakamuro：Kaneko-san, you are 46 years old now, right? . That means it was about 24 years ago, or about 1996. . But at that time, select stores were already on the rise, weren't they?

Kaneko:I didn't even know they were on the rise, although they were in their time period (laughs). But anyway, I had to find a job, so I was looking around for one, and I happened to be walking down Meiji-dori in Shibuya when I found "Edifice Shibuya. I thought it looked like an interesting store, so I went in and found that they were hiring.

Nakamuro：Heh, I see that . But yes, you used to post jobs in your store.

Kaneko:Yes . The store back then was a bit different from what it is now. The store was only on the first floor, and it had a European feel. I didn't know anything about France at the time, but I had a feeling that it was a cool store. But actually, the job offer had already ended.

Nakamuro：Oh, my (laughs).

Kaneko:Yes (laughs). But then you said, "How about ladies?" . That was "Spic & Span" at the Takashimaya Department Store in Futako-Tamagawa. That was Spic & Span at the Takashimaya Department Store in Futakotamagawa . I had sold some ladies' wear when I was working at a mass merchandiser, so I said I would give it a try, and that's how I got my first job there.

Nakamuro：Eh, I didn't know that. I joined "Edifice" when I was 19 years old, but Kaneko-san was already the reigning buyer, so this is actually the first time for me to hear about this area. We have known each other for a long time, though.

Kaneko:. maybe. I think it might be something that people in the know know. But I work in a department store, so I couldn't dress too freely. Shirt and slacks. And my hair is shaved.

Nakamuro：Have you been a shaved head since then! Mr. Kaneko, you have been a shaved head for a long time (laughs).

Kaneko:Yes, it was a long time (laughs). Because of that environment, I couldn't work in a variety of clothes, and that was like a second trial for me. I worked there for about two years. . During that time, I kept applying for a transfer to Edifice.

Nakamuro：At that time, was there still no "Journal Standard"?

Kaneko:. No, no, no. . There were only two "Edifice" stores, one in Shibuya and the other in Ginza. But anyway, I couldn't get my transfer request approved, so I decided to work harder in the ladies' wear department, and just as I was about to do so, I got a transfer to "Edifice.

Nakamuro：Heh . But you're not a buyer as soon as you walk into "Edifice", are you?

Kaneko:Of course . This is for sale at the Shibuya store.

Nakamuro：Casual?

Kaneko:At that time, the store had three floors: casual on the first floor, designer on the second floor, and closing on the basement floor. I was first assigned to the designers' floor. After that, I worked in the closing department. I also worked in the casual shop on the first floor.

Nakamuro：I had no idea . You were wearing a tie (laughs).

Kaneko:Of course . It was when Classico Italia was in vogue , so it was square tow. So I had the whole experience.

Nakamuro：How long did you do the sales?

Kaneko:. Actually, while I was at the store, I was also allowed to do some buying as a buyer attached to the store. I think it was about six months after that.

Nakamuro：At that time, what did your boss at that time see in Mr. Kaneko, and what did he see in you that made him raise you to a buyer? Do you remember?

Kaneko:I don't know, but back then, everyone was dressed in some kind of French style. Striped sweaters and leather shoes. In my case, I would take a bite of that, but every day during my lunch break, I would go to another store and buy some clothes and wear them.

Nakamuro：Don't wear yours (laughs).

Kaneko:Yes (laughs). I buy Birkenstocks and match them. So I am a little different from everyone else, but I try to express France in my own way. I think they saw that I have a wide range of skills and enthusiasm for clothes.

Nakamuro：I see . And from there, you became a buyer.

Kaneko:Yes, that's right. I was a buyer while working at the store, but I was not very good at it, and at the time, the company did not teach me the ins and outs of buying, so it was quite a trial-and-error process. I was scolded every day. I think I spent quite a long time working my way up. Now, I sometimes talk to the staff at the store in a high-handed manner (laughs).

Nakamuro：Is the purchase then in Paris?

Kaneko:Let's see, my first business trip was to New York. I was starting in Europe, but I was including some minor New York designers and ethnic accessories. Those flavors were pretty cool.

Nakamuro：Knowing such things and not knowing such things would change the interpretation of "edifice" at that time, wouldn't it? I didn't really understand such things. Even at that time, when I entered the company, the French interpretation of EDIFICE was a little different from what it is now, looking back. I didn't really get the core of what they were doing.

Kaneko:Ah . But everyone has their own filter. After all, what is French? It's an eternal question. The answer is different for each person, and I don't think there is a right answer. When I was working with my seniors and when I started working on my own, things have changed. I think that is what is interesting about French cuisine.

Nakamuro：It's a difference in interpretation, isn't it? What was French to you, Mr. Kaneko, in expressing "edifice" at that time?

Kaneko:The keywords "work, military, and marine" are in the concept. These are like the three major keywords for men, and within them, I wanted to express French chic. Since there was no one to teach me how to do this, I had no choice but to make my own way. That is why I went to France more than anyone else. Paris is not all of France.

Nakamuro：Yes, it is.

Kaneko:In fact, there is more Frenchness in the countryside. So I went looking for that kind of thing, and even spent a week driving around the south of France. I was trying to get to know the real France. I used what I felt there for buying and planning original products. I told everyone what France is like now.

Nakamuro：Did you want to do something that other select stores weren't doing?

Kaneko:Of course there was that, but "EDIFICE" started out as a concept store, so I thought the premise was different from other select stores. I thought it would be good if the store would be different from others as a result of having an appropriate lineup of products based on the concept that was the foundation of the store. It is not as if I was not conscious of differentiation at all, but I was rather serious about what I could do to be faithful to the concept.

Nakamuro：I see. I don't know if I would have been able to recognize that in the past, but I thought that was a cool thing about "Edifice," and at 19 years old, I wanted to join "Edifice. Anyway, it was cool. Also, this conversation reminded me of a time when Kaneko-san went to Provence for a buying trip. There was a bullfighting arena there, and he bought shirts worn by the American cowboys called "guardians. It was a western shirt with a small pattern of plants and trees growing in the area. When I saw it, I thought, "This is totally different from what we think of as France.

Kaneko:Wow, that's nostalgic .

Nakamuro：Do you remember?

Kaneko:I remember so much (laughs).