Interview YOON & VERBAL Co-founders of AMBUSH®

——About 10 years have passed since AMBUSH® was established, but was it quicker to experience it? Looking back, how was it?

YOON "I think it was a quick time. It's really a natural flow so far. Originally, I was studying graphic design, but as I gained a lot of experience from there, I understood and shaped the whole picture of manufacturing and brands. I think it was such 10 years that my experience was a great source of food, and if I look back, everything was connected. Not only seeing fashion, but also feeling through experience, imagining, making, and repeating such things-I played a lot in a good way, so I was able to clearly understand what I wanted to do and what I liked."

VERBAL "I didn't want to start a brand from the beginning, but all started with creating a design team to take advantage of YOON's talents. I feel like there have been a lot of encounters from there."

YOON "I've always liked fashion itself very much since I was a child, but I didn't want to work or want to be a stylist. I've been repeating many times that I failed by putting people from outside, and I started thinking that it would be better to do it myself."

——Have you always been discussing the direction of what you want to do and what you like?

VERBAL "Basically, YOON has decided the direction, and it is still going on. YOON takes shape in the form of “our own unique ideal form/direction” that is not bound by established concepts. In the first place, she has been very unique in a good sense since she was a student I met. In the United States, Asian population accounts for 5% of the total, but many Asian people living in the United States seem to be casual. In such a situation, YOON was wearing a vintage dashingly, and the music I was listening to was a grunge, and it was a stand out with the impression of a tonishing overall. I've seen such a figure, and her sense and talent have always been full of trust."

YOON "In addition, it may be a common understanding that both of us study seriously and study is very important. I'm always reading and researching something, and I'm pursuing it because it's a type that I want to know everything if I get hooked. I know that there is such a diligence at the root, so it's easy to understand each other."

VERBAL "Yes. Since YOON is a studyer, I was researching trends in other brands and studying fashion business, and I saw a lot of trial and error in on-the-job training."

——If you look only at SNS, you may get the impression that you have been successful from the beginning, but there was such an accumulation.

YOON "Every genre takes a long time to take shape as a business. Making things takes a lot of money, so it's completely different to start a brand and start a business, and the celebrities wear and temporarily increase the number of SNS followers. It may be a good thing for a celebrity to wear, but there are no brands that eat it alone. That's not the basis of your brand.
As VERBAL said, AMBUSH® was naturally raised, so in the process of continuing to make what I wanted to make, there were times when the two people said, "This is a hobby," and there were times when I was worried whether I would end up with a hobby or make a business."

VERBAL "To tell you the real story, AMBUSH® business started on your own, and there were times when it was quite difficult for the first few years. For example, thankfully, if a large number of orders come, the cost of production will be ruined, so there are poundings that make the cash lost until the next payment (laughs). Because of that, I sometimes had to skip the collection once. Still, I was able to cultivate my current style because YOON has been rushing seriously toward creativity all the time, but of course it wasn't full of things to look back on the history of the brand."

YOON "I'm serious about talking about such a business, and as a result, "Yes, life is once, why don't you try it! "It was around 2012 that we started the collection in earnest."

——And from 2015, the exhibition was moved to Paris, but what was the process leading to that decision? What is the difference?

VERBAL "YOON suddenly said, 'Let's go to Paris' (laughs). At that time, I didn't sell well but it wasn't the scale of doing it in Paris, so I didn't know where to start, so I set up a venue while groping through my network."

YOON "I've been there for a few years, and it was a time when I was looking for the next challenge. If you aim to step up in many ways, isn't it Paris? Hollywood for movies and Paris for fashion. Even though I didn't know-how, I thought that if I brought my work to that place for the time being, I would study myself."

——It wasn't planned, but first of all, there was a willingness and action to go. And when I actually went there, there was a great response.

YOON "Yes. I think it was good that we were making what we wanted to make and didn't match the trend. In Paris, there was no jewelry like AMBUSH® is doing, and on the contrary, it was interesting from a fashion perspective that it didn't fit the trend at all. It's simple, but when I made it and sent it out, I sometimes went there because the reaction was stronger overseas."

VERBAL "I think that the style of YOON itself was something that could be understood worldwide in the first place. That's why various artists from overseas, such as Kanye West, liked to wear it. Also, when I actually tried an exhibition abroad, there were a lot of encounters. Emanuel Alto, editor-in-chief of VOGUE PARIS, suddenly came into the venue and talked with YOON, starting to say, "This brand is interesting, so I will put it in the next issue" (laughs), and it often happened that something I couldn't believe was really true. I don't have a preconception overseas, so it's natural to place orders and put them if you look at it and find it interesting."

——As Mr. VERBAL said, it was a work with the potential to make you think good. Now I'm also working on clothes making as a brand, but YOON says that there is jewelry first, and that there is clothes as a canvas. Is it a stance that you can play with freedom because it is a canvas?

YOON "Now clothes are growing as a business, so I want to play as a feeling, but there are also things I want to do a little better. I've been doing Unisex until now, so I've been thinking that way, but since the number of stores overseas has increased considerably, I'm thinking that I want to continue Unisex and increase the number of things that I have divided into Men's Ladies as a plus alpha."

——You have collaborated with various brands such as NIKE, UNDERCOVER, SACAI, etc. Do you like collaboration?

YOON "Yes. Thankfully, we have received a lot of offers, but first we can't do it together unless we are respectful. Also, by collaborating with places where we can make things that we can't make, there is also an idea that we want to do if there is something we can do. I want to absorb something if I work together."

——YOON is involved in the jewelry design of Dior Men, but what do you think about how to balance it with AMBUSH®?

YOON "Dior Men has a creative director, and we already have a brand code, so I'm doing it with the feeling of coming up with new ideas in it. On the other hand, AMBUSH® is completely your own brand and has no history, so it's a stance that I'm trying to build my own archives and DNA that can be linked as a brand in the future."

——Have you ever been fed back to AMBUSH® for learning about the history and archives of Dior Men?

YOON "Although Dior Men made in the 1960s, I don't think it was created with the idea that "it will remain in this way 60 years from now." At that time, I just took care of what I had accumulated one by one. I think that French brands have such pride, but I learned how to make things with such pride. We also want to take care of each and every one of them."

——As is the case with Kim Jones of Dior Men, how do you see the various collections of how the fashion industry is moving significantly, such as the inauguration of Virgil Abro of LOUIS VUITTON?

YOON "Fashion is established with the feedback of customers. The times are changing and customers are changing, so if the old house does not change its stance, it will not be established. That's why I think it's very natural that various things are changing in response to the customer's reaction."

——Especially now, you can see the reaction directly on SNS.

YOON "In addition to SNS, of course, the changes in values themselves are also significant. In the past, there was a strong impression that fashion was particular about rich people, but now it's not something that a wide variety of people enjoy, so the values naturally change. I guess the house is also feeling it. However, I think the speed has changed depending on SNS. Until now, the brand side has been sending messages unilaterally, but with the emergence of SNS, it has become more speedy and interactive. But that's why I personally think that the brand's position should be stronger. If the brand's axis is shaken by information and reactions, the cores/DNA that should be cherished will be lost. In fact, even with AMBUSH®, the trend and brand direction are different, so I try not to keep pace with it."

——So, what is the core of the brand as AMBUSH®?

YOON "When it comes to everyday creativity, I feel like I'm shaping what I feel and what I like at that time, but the core is jewelry. I play a lot, but I want to keep the DNA as jewelry."

VERBAL "The taste of AMBUSH® jewelry such as tribal and futuristic is of course, but above all, she has a stance that "if you make it, you can't make it halfway," and I think that such a stance is the root of the fun and drastic creation of AMBUSH® DNA."

——The impression that AMBUSH® is also rooted in culture such as movies, music, and photography, but I personally feel that designers who have gained popularity in recent years, such as Virgil, Kim, and Raf Simons, tend to be closely related to culture.

YOON "I feel that there are more opportunities for people who see not only culture but also various things to work on fashion. As I mentioned earlier, there is a need for something that is strong and thick that is not shaken by information and reactions, and it is exactly the fashion created by such people."

——Oh, I understand very well. In the collaboration with NIKE the other day, the design was quite conscious of Japan, but are you actively incorporating MADE IN JAPAN and the uniqueness of Japan only to brands with many fans even globally?

YOON "It's difficult to make it completely MADE IN JAPAN, but I'd like to do it as much as possible. In collaboration with NIKE, I wanted to create a collection and enliven it for the FIFA Women's World Cup, so I was more conscious of the uniqueness of Japan. Also, since the game is held in the summer, the image of the summer festival was taken in the taste of happi coat.
The reason why we feature Tokyo and Japan is that AMBUSH® is a brand that started in Tokyo, so I think it's better not to forget our roots. As a brand, overseas expansion is growing, but I would like to show the side of Tokyo properly and value it. In that sense, I started in Shibuya, so I would like to end it someday in Shibuya (laughs)."

——No, don't finish it (laughs). As you mentioned, VERBAL's studio is also in Shibuya, and it is located in AMBUSH®WORKSHOP, a directly managed store, but why was Shibuya?

YOON "Isn't Minato-ku to make the brand bigger? There was also an honest opinion that "(laughs), but I wanted to do it where we could move most naturally. I thought Shibuya was the best brand for me. When I first started, there was nothing around the atelier, but now I can do various things.……That's also the charm of Shibuya. I feel that new energy is constantly coming and going, and old and unsuccessful things are naturally gone. That's why I think Fengsui in Shibuya is good (laughs)."

——Why did VERBAL first set up a studio in Shibuya?

VERBAL "somehow (laughs)." A friend of a musician lived here and often came to play, but I felt it would be convenient if I had a base in Shibuya, so it would be comfortable to set up a studio. So, when I opened the shop, I saw various properties and found that Shibuya was the best thing that came to me."

YOON "Yes, it was great to find a building where we could set up a shop on our own. Because we can communicate what we have made in our own space. I'm doing DIY, so it's difficult to communicate in Minato-ku and other places."

——Does the city of Shibuya itself affect creation?

YOON "Of course. I'm always looking at people walking, and when I look at the replacement of buildings, I can see the times, so it's a great study. I love seeing people in the center street."

——I think Parco is one of Shibuya's representative things, but do you have any memories of Parco?

YOON "I've been a lot. Parco in Shibuya was first created in 1971, and I liked the atmosphere of that time remained. I'm looking forward to seeing what is going on with the 2020 version of Parco while retaining that atmosphere. And it's very nice to see the second shop of AMBUSH® in Parco, which represents Shibuya, our home, so we're planning a special line to take on new challenges unique to Parco. It has a different world view from the story of the collection, and we have a shop-only line that is not available at wholesale stores. Also, this time, I was particular about the interior and made it to play with limited space, so I can't wait to see the reaction of those who can come. Because there are many shops in the open space, there are our own shops, so I think it will be a valuable learning place for us to see various things from a different perspective. "

A new BLACK line "ARTISANAL", which focuses on the production of AMBUSH® in Japan, is scheduled to be launched at the same time as Shibuya PARCO opening.

Shibuya PARCO Limited Products
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