Shoe shiners from various regions, each showcasing their skills, have gathered at the ISETAN Shoe Fair. Here's a digest introducing their profiles and charms.

Brift H Yuya Hasegawa

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The mastermind behind the shoe-shining boom.

Yuya Hasegawa, who began shining shoes on the streets in 2004, opened his shoe-shining shop in Aoyama, Tokyo in 2008 with the slogan "Revolutionizing footwear in Japan." He was the first in the world to introduce the counter style, and his style, which overturned the conventional image of shoe shining, quickly became a hot topic and was featured in various media. Furthermore, he won first place at the first World Championships in ShoeShining held in London, attracting attention from around the world. Hasegawa continues to shine shoes at his shop, while also working to popularize shoe shining in various ways, such as developing his own brand of shoe care products, publishing the book "The Book of Shoe Shining," and supervising a new type of shoe shining business called "Briftstand."

Shoe Care & Order Room FANS. Michio Mimura

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Shoe polishing primarily involves caring for the leather.

Fans Asakusa Main Store is a shoe care and custom shoe shop run by R&D, which handles shoe care products such as "M. MOWBRAY." Michio Mimura of the store has been involved in shoe polishing for three years since joining the company. Mimura is known for his "Illumina Shine" technique, which shines the outside of the shoe from toe to heel, a technique he established when he participated in the first ever Japan Shoe Polishing Championship, but he says that the most important thing is leather care. While they certainly accept orders for mirror polishing, he says that the store's characteristic is that they spend more time on removing dirt. For cordovan leather, they use less wax and finish it with an emulsifying cream and a horsehair brush. He is scheduled to participate in the ISETAN Shoe Fair together with Shota Okajima of the Ginza Mitsukoshi store.

Shoe Fair In-Store Schedule

September 11th (Wed): Mimura 12th (Thu): Okamura 13th (Fri): Okamura 14th (Sat): Mimura 15th (Sun): Nakajima 16th (Mon): Takebayashi

GAKU PLUS: Gaku Sato & Mana Kawamura

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Shoe shining is a live performance.

After shining shoes on the street in front of Nagoya's famous "Nana-chan doll," Gaku Sato started his shoe-shining salon "GAKU PLUS" in 2015 through crowdfunding. In 2017, he moved to his current location in a vintage building, and this year he launched "GAKU PLUS TOKYO" inside the Rifare Jiyugaoka store in Tokyo. His apprentice, Mana Kawamura, is permanently stationed at the Tokyo store. Sato describes shoe shining as a live performance and values one-on-one communication with customers above all else. He originally sought a career related to shoes and was drawn to shoe shining because of the constant interaction with people. His passion for shoe shining is evident in his involvement in supervising the book "Shoe Shining Start Book."

Shoe Fair Schedule

September 11th (Wed): Sato 12th (Thu): Sato 13th (Fri): Ogawa 14th (Sat): Ogawa 15th (Sun): Kawamura 16th (Mon): Kawamura

GMT FACTORY Teruyoshi Togashi

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Base care only a repair shop can provide .

GMTFACTORY is a care and repair shop run by GMT, known as the importer of brands such as Tricker's and Jalan Sriwijaya. Teruyoshi Togashi has been in charge of shoe care at the Yoyogi-Uehara store for eight years since its opening. His specialty is base care, which he has been doing even before joining the store. As it is originally a repair shop, he focuses on care that makes shoes last longer, and performs cleaning, leather conditioning, and scratch repair on various types of leather. Mirror polishing is often done after this base care, and perhaps because of this approach, the number of bespoke shoes brought in has been increasing recently. He also has extensive skills in caring for women's shoes, and he encourages customers to visit as a pair at the ISETAN Shoe Fair.

Shoe Fair In-Store Schedule

September 11th (Wed): Togashi (12:00 - 20:00)
Thursday, the 12th: Togashi (11:00 AM - 6:00 PM)
Friday, the 13th: Togashi (12:00 - 20:00)
Saturday the 14th: Togashi Sunday the 15th: Togashi

92-NINTYTWO- Haruki Abe

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A more casual and fun way to polish shoes.

92-NINTYTWO- is a shoe polishing and repair shop that opened in April 2017 inside Edion Tsutaya Home Appliances in Hiroshima. The owner, Haruki Abe, worked in elderly care while self-studying shoe polishing, and at the age of 24, he became the first AVEL-certified SAPHIR shoe care trainer in Japan. In 2016, he opened "BURIE," Hiroshima's first counter-style shoe polishing shop, and became independent. Currently, "92-NINTYTWO-" has two stores in Hiroshima City, and customers come not only from the Chugoku region but also from Fukuoka and other areas. Mr. Abe himself often participates in events in regional areas and overseas. Mr. Abe also says that he wants to propose shoe polishing, which has recently taken on a somewhat cultural aspect, in a more casual and pop way, like getting a haircut.

Shoe Fair In-Store Schedule

September 11th (Wed): Abe 12th (Thu): Abe 13th (Fri): Abe

OAK ROOM Steve Han

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One of Taipei's most stylish shops.

Robin Chang, who is well-versed in men's fashion trends in Japan and Europe, started this select shop in Taipei, Taiwan, specializing in men's shoes. In addition to high-end ready-to-wear shoes from brands such as John Lobb and Crockett & Jones, the shop also carries a wide range of apparel and leather goods from brands like Ring Jacket. Furthermore, it actively holds trunk shows for shoes and clothing, inviting overseas brands and craftsmen. Shoe care and shoe polishing services are provided by Steve Han, a staff member who was trained under Mr. Hasegawa of Brift H. Steve also participated in the first ever Japan Shoe Polishing Championship, where he showcased his skills.

THE WAY THINGS GO (TWTG) - Go Ishimi & Naoki Terashima

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The skills of two of Japan's top craftsmen.

Founded in 2012 by shoe shiner Go Ishimi, the shop opened in a vintage building in Semba, Osaka in 2015. Ishimi has shined approximately 20,000 pairs of shoes as a traveling shoe shiner. In 2019, he opened a store in Tokyo in collaboration with shoe repair shop Union Works. Ishimi won first place in the first "Japan Shoe Shining Championship," and in the second "Japan Shoe Shining Championship," the shop's shoe shiner, Naoki Terashima, won first place. This shoe shining shop has been crowned Japan's best for two consecutive years. The unique shop name is taken from a video work released in 1987 by Peter Fischli & David Weiss, artists whom Ishimi admires. Works reflecting his aesthetic sense can be seen throughout the shop.

Shoe Fair In-Store Schedule

September 11th (Wed): Iwami 12th (Thu): Terashima 13th (Fri): Terashima 15th (Sun): Iwami

Y's Shoeshine Yuta Sugimura

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A shoe shiner active in Shizuoka and around the world.

He began working as a shoe shiner in Shizuoka Prefecture in 2014, and opened his own shoe shining shop in Shizuoka City in 2018. In the same year his shop opened, he placed third in the first "Japan Shoe Shining Championship," and this past March, he won the World Championship in Shoe Shining held in London. Influenced by his father, who loved traditional fashion, he started shining shoes in high school. During his university years, he began to study shoe shining on his own. Although he has recently been active outside of Shizuoka Prefecture, such as in Tokyo, since winning the world championship, his shop on the first basement floor in the bustling downtown area of Shizuoka City has a small, calm atmosphere, and many fans look forward to visiting it.





Photo: Takao Ohta, Hirotaka Hashimoto
Text: Yukihiro Sugawara