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Japanese denim will be in the spotlight at Kingpins Amsterdam.
The B2B denim event announced on Thursday that a dedicated space will showcase denim mills and manufacturers from Japan including Kurabo, San Marino, Rainbow Textiles, Betty Smith, Big John, Ideablue and Japan Delivery Service.
The Japanese exhibitors bring a fresh point of view to the show, which traditionally features a who’s who in denim manufacturing from other sourcing regions like Turkey, Pakistan, Mexico and China.
Some exhibitors like Kurabo have a long history with Kingpins, such as denim mill Kurabo, which exhibited at the first Kingpins Show in New York City in 2004. Others are new to the event such as San Marino, which has vertical textile and apparel manufacturing operations in Japan, Italy, China and ASEAN countries.
“Japanese denim has been central to Kingpins since our very first show,” said Vivian Wang, Kingpins’ newly appointed CEO. “We appreciate the quality and craftsmanship of Japanese denim fabric and jeans makers and created a special section within the Kingpins show to highlight the work of a curated selection of companies.”
The “Made in Japan” area will be in a special in enclave near The Boxes on the ground floor of SugarFactory. The entrance will be marked by an oversized denim kimono that has been specially commissioned by Kingpins and created by Showa, a sustainable denim manufacturer from the Kojima district of Kurashiki, which is exhibiting in the Ideablue booth. Visitors will be able to enjoy matcha tea while browsing among the exhibitors’ collections.
Additionally, Kingpins will also host a panel discussion moderated by Doug Gunn, The Vintage Showroom co-founder, and featuring representatives from the Japanese exhibitors.
Brands have been pushing Japanese denim to the fore in new collections. In January, Levi’s launched Levi’s Blue Tab, a new premium men’s and women’s line made with proprietary selvedge denim created alongside Kaihara Denim Mill. Buck Mason and Lee used Kaihara’s selvedge denim in their men’s collaboration as well.
Japanese selvedge denim is also part of digital creator Cowboy Crust’s new collection with Brooklyn retailer Left Field NYC.
