Watertight fasteners began with Arc'teryx.
I bought my first pair of shoes from Arc'teryx in about 2015.
Takagi:It's unusual to have shoes instead of shells or bags (laughs). 2015 was the year Arc'teryx released its first shoes.
Lately, I've been seeing a lot of people wearing Arc'teryx shoes when I walk around town.
Ken Takagi is the head of the Arc'teryx brand at Amer Sports Japan, the exclusive distributor of Arc'teryx in Japan. He loves mountaineering, backcountry skiing, and climbing.
Takagi:The scale of our business is still small, but I am glad that you feel that way. Speaking of shoes, the model I am wearing right now, called "Arrakis," is a standard. They are slippers for climbing and can be worn with the heels squashed down. Climbing is basically barefoot, so the "Arakis" are designed to be worn barefoot as well. I recommend them (laughs).
Thank you (laughs). I have a strong impression that Arcteryx landed in Japan before I knew it and became popular before I knew it.
Takagi:It is not until the 2014 fall/winter season that we, "Ameer Sports", started to deal with them, or rather, they landed in Japan in earnest. Probably. I think it was when the Arc'teryx Arrow 22 was released that people started to see our products. That was in 1998, and it was being handled by select stores.
When was Arc'teryx itself founded?
Takagi:The company was founded in 1989 in North Vancouver on the west coast of Canada. In the beginning, the brand name was "Rock Solid. Originally, we were a group of shady people who made climbing harnesses and slings and sold them near crags (laughs).
Is it more like a garage manufacturer?
Takagi:That is exactly what happened. The items I made at that time became so popular that I changed the brand name to "Arc'teryx" in 1991.
At that time, you were still selling only climbing gear.
Takagi:That's right. From there I made backpacks in 1994. At that time, everything was made in Canada, and many of them cost over 100,000 yen. They were so elaborately made that they are still talked about among some enthusiasts.
When did you start wearing apparel?
Takagi:1998. Our first apparel was hard shells, such as the Alpha SV. And this is not well known, but at that time, we jointly developed a watertight fastener with YKK.
Is this the same watertight zipper used on GORE-TEX jackets?
Takagi:Yes, it was. There was a Flyfisher employee back home who was sleeping in his tent and morning dew started leaking from the zipper. He decided to do something about it, and when he applied silicone to the back side of the zipper, the leakage stopped. That idea led to the creation of the watertight zipper that is used today.
That's surprising. I bet there are a lot of people who don't know about it. Also, the name of the Arc'teryx item is Greek.
Takagi:When an item is named "Alpha," it is for climbing. Beta" is for trekking and hiking. The silhouette of the "Alpha" is more streamlined. In the case of shells, climbers want to see their footwork, and they don't want the bottom of the shell to flap around, so the silhouette is clean. The "Beta," on the other hand, is a bit more roomy. It's not so much a question of which is better than the other, but more a matter of segregation according to the scene. So you might want to look at the items with that as a guide.
I always thought the colors were really distinctive.
Takagi:We have about 15 color designers at our headquarters. They are not designers who design items, but designers who think only about color. They think about even a single sewing thread.
Color designer in his home country.
Even the sewing threads are made with the utmost care.
Takagi:Normally, stitching color is DTM (Dye to Match), in which we tell the factory to use an approximate color. However, the color designers at the Arc'teryx headquarters also give instructions. We don't want to leave it up to the factories, so we choose all the sewing threads ourselves. The difference between the two is not something you can see with your eyes, but people in Japan can sense the difference, and I think that's why our products are so popular.
They are making samples in their own huge factory.
Takagi:Also, we have our own factory in our home country. Whenever we have an idea, we can test it immediately. It is a daily occurrence for us to quickly make a sample, put it on, and go to the mountains to test it. A 30-minute bike ride will take you to the mountains, where you can do everything from hiking to climbing. On a good day, there are no designers left in the company (laughs). (Laughs) Because of this environment, we are able to give feedback to our products, such as whether the pockets are in the right position or not, or whether the pockets should be here for this kind of movement.
Arc'teryx has a sense of statelessness, doesn't it? It's Canadian, but it also has an American feel.
Takagi:North Vancouver, where Arcteryx is headquartered, is just a short distance south of Seattle in the United States. And if you go to the east side of Canada, you will find French-speaking countries. The country itself has a strong European influence. The mixture of these cultures may contribute to the statelessness of the restaurant.
