2006 - BEST OF THE BEST SNEAKERS

Ken Obata & Namura_ShoeBAR_Tokyo
2006 Japanese trends

It may just be a fad but Skinny pants are the hot trend for 2006 in Japan in street fashion. To match those pants, the sneakers that people are selecting are styles which are more unusual, have a little more perceived value and are basically less mass-market items. The major brands are of course still the main players but there are lot of newer Japanese brands coming along which are offering a slightly different take on the basic sneaker.

One of the factors creating this trend is that many Japanese apparel brands are launching their own footwear collections. The smaller brands have also improved their quality over the last few seasons and are now starting to come out with more original designs. There is everything from over the top, crazy colour combos to sleeker monotone looks. They are also playing with materials in ways which they haven’t done in the past. Instead of just sticking to canvas and basic leathers as they once did, they are experimenting with higher quality leathers and suedes and specialised materials such as ballistic nylon and Kevlar.

As with most markets the vulcanised look is also hot at the moment. Converse practically owns that market but there are a lot of consumers here who are looking for styles which are not available from Converse, they want something different, new and something suitable to go with those damn skinny pants.