THINGS I LOVE vol.12

　

　

Hedi Slimane's Dior Homme first became an unprecedented hit in Tokyo. Following the now-defunct Barneys Shinjuku store and United Arrows Harajuku main store, a store will open in Omotesando. A space was opened in the now-defunct legendary 10 Corso Como Aoyama store, and the brand quickly became one of the leading men's brands of its time.
A few months later, I met Eddie again at Café des Pres in Harajuku. It was around 2:00 pm at this time, and there was a good amount of outside light. Eddie's expression was calm, unlike last time when we met at the same place for the first time. It seemed like he was completely used to Tokyo. I also interviewed him for publication in the magazine MR High Fashion. Of course, I went wearing the black suit that Eddie had made for me, but I ended up being about 15 minutes late.

One thing he said at that time that left an impression on me was that ``Too many people in Tokyo wear T-shirts.'' At the time, he was selling white blouses at Dior Homme, so he seemed to have an opinion about the gap with the Japanese market. I remember it being something along the lines of, ``You should wear more blouses! You should have fun with ties! You should dress up!'' But from the next season, T-shirts and jeans dominated Dior Homme's collections. I think there was definitely an influence from Shibuya, Harajuku, and Omotesando. For about three seasons after that, whenever I went to the Dior Homme Paris Fashion Week, I was always allowed backstage for ``Fashion Tsushin'' interviews, and I repeatedly interviewed Eddie. Each time, Eddie talked about a clear theme and the concept and story behind it, and although he was full of confidence in his content, it was impressive that he spoke with a sense of shyness.

Normally, outsiders are allowed backstage after the show, but in the case of Dior Homme, they were allowed special access before the show. Eddie was concerned about wanting the new look to look neat and tidy. I was grateful.
Because of that, I was busy during the Paris Fashion Week men's collection. So it was during my visit to Paris for the women's collection that I went to Christian Dior's store on Avenue Montaigne to shop for the new Dior Homme collection.
After that, Dior Homme was also opened on Via Spiga in Milan. Every time I go to Milan, I always pop into that store after checking in at the hotel. It was a time when Dior Homme was immersed in everything from white blouses to slim coats, short jackets, slim jeans, sneakers, silver accessories, jewelry boxes, and more.

I believe it was in 2004, but Hidetoshi Nakata (hereinafter referred to as Mr. Hide) was filming a commercial in London, and Mr. Hide asked me if I wanted to go to Cannes after the shooting, and the two of us went to the Cannes Film Festival. For some reason, I ended up walking the red carpet and attending an awards ceremony, but I only had an olive green Dior Homme set with me, so I wore that. Then, he was easily turned away from the door. Mr. Hide had come at the invitation of Mr. Armani, so he was wearing an Armani tuxedo. His tie was questionable and he was warned, but he was able to enter the venue. Even though I was a stylist, I made the big mistake of leaving the venue for disqualifying the dress code, but when I saw the people entering the venue, I noticed that many of them were wearing tuxedos that looked like rental costumes, giving it a very unrefined atmosphere. Rather, I told the boring doorman, ``Go! I'm glad you said "home!" ...I told myself.

The next day, Hide and I had no plans and were thinking about what to do when we got a call on Hide's cell phone from Eddie, who had come to Cannes for work. The invitation was, ``Would you like to go to a bar like the Casbah in Cannes (a bar in Ebisu, Tokyo)?'' We both had free time, so we met at 6pm and hit the members-only bar very early. As soon as we entered, Eddie pulled out the champagne and we toasted! I've been drinking a lot since I entered Cannes, and I've always been in a state of inebriation. I entered the store as soon as it opened, and the atmosphere was unique and had an extraordinary atmosphere. Eddie introduced the guests that were arriving one after another. First up is Christina Ricci and her boyfriend. Intoxicated by the champagne, we casually shook hands. The man was Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter, but he wasn't wearing his usual helmet, the store was very noisy, and I didn't really understand him as he greeted me with a hug. After that, more and more celebrities came into the store and said, ``I've seen them before,'' and Hide and I were so excited that before we knew it, we were dancing.

By the time the store was at its peak, Eddie had disappeared with his boyfriend. I was soaked in champagne and tired from dancing, so I lay exhausted on the sofa. Then, the woman sitting next to me asked me to toast with a glass of champagne. As I was toasting the beautiful woman, Hide-san said to me, ``Suke-chan, let's go home!'' and we left the restaurant. While walking to the hotel, Hide-san asked me, ``Suke-chan, how was Cate Blanchett?'' "What! Kate?" When I was wondering what Hide was saying, he said, ``You were toasting earlier, weren't you?'' Wow, that beautiful woman was Cate Blanchett! I suddenly sobered up.
The Cannes Film Festival I went to with Hide is an irreplaceable memory. I was acutely aware of the strictness of the dress code, but I also learned that Cannes is a rural town. I realized that the dress code requires rules, not taste. In the end, I didn't get any sleep until the next morning and left Cannes on an early morning flight.

■Tomoki Yuma (@stsukezane）
Born in Kyoto City in 1965. Started his career as an editor in the editorial department of Magazine House ``POPEYE''. Currently, in addition to planning and styling fashion pages for magazines, she also designs advertising costumes for artists and musicians. Before the coronavirus, he covered men's collections in Paris and Milan for over 35 years.

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