1.Prologue
In California, where I was born and raised, most people like to dress down. Growing up I wore a t-shirt and jeans or shorts practically everyday.
San Francisco, located in Northern California, was historically a blue-collar town, a fact that facilitated the development of modern-day denim jeans—namely, Levi’s. These days it’s an ICT town, but jeans remain a staple of the average Californian’s getup.
California is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the east by the Sierra Nevadas, and surf clothing and outdoor wear from brands like Patagonia have become an essential part of California attire.
Meanwhile, down in Southern California, L.A. is ground zero for urban streetwear culture—brands like Stüssy.
The streets of Harajuku/Omotesando are lined with flagships and street-level outposts from these California casualwear brands and much, much more.
In this article I’ve put together a list of stores from some of my favorite casualwear brands.
2.Deus Ex Machina
(* Deus Ex Machina’s Harajuku Store closed permanently back in March 2020. The brand currently operates a store in the Asakusa area, and has tentatively announced that it intends to open up a new flagship sometime in 2021.)
For a California native, surfing and motorcycles are eternal—the coolest sports of all time.
But it was perhaps Deus Ex Machina, a surf and bike shop on the North Wing of Cat Street, which truly awakened me to the primal appeal of these visceral callings.
As a young teenager, two images in particular had left a deep impression on me: the waves of the North Shore in Hawaii, and the San Francisco Hells Angels. And at Deus Ex Machina’s Harajuku flagship, known as the Residence of Impermanence, it felt as if this latent longing within was bursting into bloom.
Both surfing and motorcycles are pursuits where even a split second of carelessness can lead to major injury, and sometimes even death. For whatever reason, it seems men are driven to chase such ephemeral pursuits of the moment.
As a California native, my bike of choice would be a Harley-Davidson, but looking at Deus’s homepage, custom Japanese bikes—Hondas, Kawasakis, and Yamahas—seem just as intriguing.
You can find their apparel on the second floor, but also check out the great cafe on the first floor. I personally recommend the grilled sandwiches—get the barbecue pulled pork.
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Deus Ex Machina Asakusa
3.Patagonia Surf Tokyo / Outlet
So fully intending to take up surfing, I’m now debating whether to get a Deus wetsuit or a Patagonia wetsuit.
The Patagonia store on the North Wing of Cat Street is where you’ll find their surf gear as well as a discount section that is worth checking out—I swing by often just to have a peek at the new additions.
Patagonia stores in Tokyo carry a wide range of sizes, mine included, making the brand one of my favorite places to shop.
Although there was a short period where I stayed away after some rumblings surfaced about certain questionable donations the company had made, I have since gravitated back, and it remains one of the best outdoor clothing and gear makers out there in terms of quality.
I even have a fleece jacket and some other items that I bought in California and have been wearing for over ten years. Their clothes may command a premium price, but when you consider how long you’ll be using each item, it all makes perfect sense.
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Pagatonia Surf Tokyo/Outlet
4.Levi's
Since I was a kid I’ve worn denim jeans of all types and all grades, and if there’s one conclusion to draw from my experiences, it’s that you can’t go wrong with Levi’s 501s. Design, quality, price—501s are the ideal balance of everything you’d want in a pair of jeans. Yes, even that darned button fly.
Levi’s stores in Tokyo have a great selection of products and a friendly staff. Conversely, the denim stores I’ve been to in California have always, it seems to me, been manned by people who don’t look happy to be there.
I’ve purchased several pairs of 501s from the Levi’s standalones in Harajuku and Shibuya in the past, but next time I plan on checking out the Shinjuku store—apparently there is Tailor Shop inside where you can customize and personalize your purchases.
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Levi's Store Harajuku Flagship
5.Stüssy
For Californians, Stüssy tees are superior streetwear. Whether you’re a surfer, skateboarder, or into the hip-hop scene, fashion freaks of independent mind, gravitate to this brand.
However, the brand has relatively few standalones and is particular about where its clothes are sold, so items can be hard to obtain. Here in Tokyo, the brand has two outposts within my sphere of activity—Harajuku, and Shibuya—and I regularly pop in to check for new arrivals.
For clotheshorses, there’s just something about places like this that are frequently—and if you’re a stranger, perpetually—out of stock. They demand your attention.
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Stüssy Harajuku
Stüssy Shibuya
6.Champion
Champion t-shirts and socks have been (alongside Hanes) staples of my wardrobe since my middle school and high school days growing up in California. The brand is so ubiquitous that you can find their products—which have a familiar, lived-in feel—at sporting goods retailers and supermarkets alike.
Meanwhile, here in Japan, Champion has become, seemingly out of nowhere, all the buzz over the last few years. It’s opened outposts in shopping centers and even on Cat Street, much to my surprise and delight.
Its products are high quality but low priced—a brand that’ll give you plenty of mileage and a lot of bang for your buck.
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Champion Brand House Shibuya Tokyo
Champion Harajuku
7.Gregory
(*Gregory Harajuku has closed, but the brand continues to run a store in Ginza)
In my mind, Gregory is the undisputed king of backpacks. And not just backpacks—their products across the board are highly functional and durable, well designed and practical. If you haven’t already, do yourself a favor and try them out.
In terms of design, the stylishness of Arc'teryx backpacks is hard to beat; in terms of durability, Patagonia backpacks are indisputably reliable. But when it comes to how secure and comfortable a backpack feels on your shoulders, Gregory is number one.
The standalone in Harajuku along Meiji-dori carries exclusive colors and seasonal items. Required visiting for anyone on this journey called life.
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Gregory Ginza
8.Timberland
I wear a size 29 cm or 30 cm shoe (it varies by brand and model), so finding shoes to my liking in Tokyo has always been a tedious task.
Back when I was here in Tokyo as a college student studying abroad, I bought my shoes at the kind of stores in Ryogoku and Okachimachi frequented by sumo wrestlers. Somewhere along my search I realized that Timberland carried my size for many of its models.
Timberland is perhaps best known for its iconic yellow boots—a staple of the hip-hop scene—but it carries a varied lineup of shoes that fit comfortably somewhere along the American casual spectrum.
Give your Timberlands a coating of mink oil or other leather protector on occasion to keep them in good shape—they’ll reward you for it over the long run.
Timberland used to have a standalone along Aoyama-dori, but now I go to the Shinjuku store, which is just a stone’s throw from Isetan Department Store.
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Timberland Shinjuku
Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku Tokyo 160-0022
9.Epilogue
Patagonia first came to Japan about thirty years ago, in the latter half of the 80s. At the time, it was just another purveyor of outdoor clothing and gear with zero brand recognition. But its Tokyo flagship just happened to open in Mejiro, in Big Brother’s neck of the woods, and he tells me that he would often go there for his ski wear and surf wear.
In his estimation Patagonia has always made quality products through and through, becoming a household name thanks to fabrics like Synchilla fleece and Capilene polyester, which he says brought a whole new level of comfort to the slopes.
At the time, the brand had a store in Haleiwa, on the North Shore of Oahu—a more locally-oriented store separate from the one there now. And apparently it offered Synchilla fleece products for surprisingly cheap. (In Hawaii, the land of eternal summer, nobody wears Synchilla.) So he would buy ten or so items and give them out to his friends back in Japan as, believe it or not, souvenirs from Hawaii.
To this day, come winter, Big Brother dons a now 30-year-old fleece he bought on one such Hawaii trip, proudly displaying the old Patagonia logo as a badge of honor. And just the other day he was in great spirits after getting his Patagonia backpack and jacket—both of which he’s been using for 20-plus years—repaired for cheap at the Harajuku store.
