I've never been but I wonder if it would be worthwhile to stop into Paul Stuart in Tokyo.

Also, I'm not sure how you feel about denim, but I'm sure there are a ton of denim shops given the high regard that Japanese denim has.

Samurai denim is supposedly good stuff and hard to find stateside (I think only one place in NYC carries it).

 

man, it's been 11 yrs since I was last in Japan so I can't remember all the hot spots as it were. Shibuya is one of the main shopping hubs, although you're surely bound to run into a Beams and Isetan store. I would say Aoyama and Harajuku is also a good bet . it's a mixed bag really. sorry I can't be more helpful. the Other Forum might be able to assist you

 

Thanks! I'm in NYC usually several times a week and the NYC Paul Stuart shop is probably my favorite menswear store. I forgot they had stores in Tokyo. If I'm near one I'll check it out, but I probably won't make a special trip since I can always visit the NYC store. I'm definitely fine with checking out denim though! One of my favorite pairs of jeans are a Japanese brand, Edwin. Just googled Samurai. Gulp! At $345 (US) they are probably out of my budget, although if I can find 'em cheaper in Japan I'll definitely check them out.

 

the Other Forum might be able to assist you

Yeah, there were a couple of threads already that I searched. I was there in 2009 but that was before I had discovered AAAC, SF, etc so I mostly checked out the big dept. stores like Takashimaya. I wouldn't mind checking out some smaller or independent shops this time around.

 

One of my favorite pairs of jeans are a Japanese brand, Edwin.

I could never get past Brad Pitt being the pitch man for Edwin

 

I could never get past Brad Pitt being the pitch man for Edwin

LOL! I had no idea! I got a pair 50% of from a Mr Porter sale when they still carried them, and liked them so much I grabbed a backup pair before they sold out.

 

These might help:

https://sartorialdoctrine.com/post/41018460095/menswear-shopping-in-tokyo-japan

 

From what I remember, Shinjuku is simply full of department stores, which are for the most part are just clothing (unlike North American department stores which include housewares, electronics, toys, etc). A lot of these stores pack higher end merchandise which I think would be of interest to forum members. Shibuya itself seems to cater more to a younger crowd, but there are two main drags in the area that have a lot of higher end stores (not sure if they are mostly geared towards women, though) - Omotesando and Aoyama Dori.

Do search out some locations of Maker's Shirt. This is the Japanese name of Kamakura Shirts and instead of paying $79 USD a shirt you'll pay (at current exchange rates) $51 US a shirt.

 

From what I remember, Shinjuku is simply full of department stores, which are for the most part are just clothing (unlike North American department stores which include housewares, electronics, toys, etc). A lot of these stores pack higher end merchandise which I think would be of interest to forum members. Shibuya itself seems to cater more to a younger crowd, but there are two main drags in the area that have a lot of higher end stores (not sure if they are mostly geared towards women, though) - Omotesando and Aoyama Dori.

Do search out some locations of Maker's Shirt. This is the Japanese name of Kamakura Shirts and instead of paying $79 USD a shirt you'll pay (at current exchange rates) $51 US a shirt.

Thanks! Last time I was there my hotel was in the Shinjuku area so that's sort of what I explored. I'll definitely try to check out Shibuya. I'm a big fan of Kamakura (I have maybe 6 of them) so I'll definitely try to seek out one of their stores. The Japanese site has a lot more products on it than the US site, so I'm curious what they would have in a store. I haven't even heard where our hotel is yet, but I'll be performing in Chiyoda and it looks like there's one at the Marunouchi Building in Chiyoda.

 

Looks like you might be near Ginza, which is worth checking out if you've never been...like the 5th Avenue of Tokyo. Last time I stayed close to there in Kanda, which sadly was a business district. Wasn't bad on Thursday and Friday night (for visiting a few bars and pubs), but almost completely deserted on Saturday night.

 

Looks like you might be near Ginza, which is worth checking out if you've never been...like the 5th Avenue of Tokyo.

Yep, and I've never been. Funny, I've known that's a shopping district probably since high school just because of this recording.

 

Check out tomorrowland, it's close to tokyo station in near the Mitsubishi building. Close by are a few interesting shops as well.. Just went there two weeks back


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Uh, you should totally proxy an A-1 Blouson from Ring Jacket for me if they have a light brown herringbone/houndstooth or a heather grey anything again. Why does the fair isle variant @ the armoury have to be 30% polyester? $710 for 30% poly? Noooooo, thanks.

 

Check out tomorrowland, it's close to tokyo station in near the Mitsubishi building. Close by are a few interesting shops as well.. Just went there two weeks back

Thanks! Off to EWR in an hour or so. Back on the 8th.

 

Uh, you should totally proxy an A-1 Blouson from Ring Jacket for me if they have a light brown herringbone/houndstooth or a heather grey anything again. Why does the fair isle variant @ the armoury have to be 30% polyester? $710 for 30% poly? Noooooo, thanks.

You could just email them and they're willing to do a sale over the phone/internet.

 

Got back last night. I had a really great time in Japan, but not much time for menswear shopping. I did manage to go to the Shinjuku United Arrows and Beams+ though. I liked a lot of stuff at United Arrows, but dang they are expensive. Aldens (not shell) were $1000ish and C&J benchgrade around $800. Grabbed a couple of shirts at the Akihabara location of Kamakura too. My best purchase was at the Tsukiji Aritsugu knife shop though. My kitchen knives are all Japanese and I hand sharpen them on waterstones. I had sort of wanted a Yanagi knife for a while so when I saw this Damascus blue steel Aritsugu with a horn bolster I grabbed it. That brand is tough to get in the US and notoriously hard to put a first edge on, so it was great to have the guy at the shop set it up for me. I'm going to try it out and make some sushi tonight.

 

Nice catch.

 

I believe I have stepped into the knife shop you mentioned. Did you enjoy some sushi at Tsukiji Market during the early morning hours? Does the public still have access to the tuna auction? Glad to hear it was a great trip. I will hopefully make it out there next summer.

 

I believe I have stepped into the knife shop you mentioned. Did you enjoy some sushi at Tsukiji Market during the early morning hours? Does the public still have access to the tuna auction? Glad to hear it was a great trip. I will hopefully make it out there next summer.

Yep, you can still go to the auction but you have to get there really early since they now only let a limited number in. I was there at 5am and that was too late. A couple I spoke to from the UK said you need to be there at 3am, ugh! The knife shops were really amazing. Tsukiji Masamoto is cash only though. I bought my wife some carbon steel tailoring shears there. There actually were two Aritsugu and Masamoto shops, each only a few blocks away. One in the more commercial district, and one catering more to the trade. Here's the Aritsugu in the trade area where I got mine:

For breakfast I got this amazing dish from a street food vendor. The guy starts with a clam, cooks it for a while, then adds a crab claw, 3 pieces of fish, some roe, then adds some oil, some kind of sauce and torches it. Delicious and only about $8!

 

For breakfast I got this amazing dish from a street food vendor. The guy starts with a clam, cooks it for a while, then adds a crab claw, 3 pieces of fish, some roe, then adds some oil, some kind of sauce and torches it. Delicious and only about $8!

dang, that looks delicious. I miss street vendor food in Japan