Contents

1. Introduction to LA SCALA models and how to order them
   1. EntryModel
   2. High-end model
   3. Be Spoke
2. • Brand Philosophy
   • NOBUTO YAMAGUCHI Profile
   • Original Interview
   • LA SCALA history

La Scala, a tailor in-house for Isetan Men's, is run by Nobuhito Yamaguchi and offers made-to-measure and full bespoke orders. We will tailor a garment to your specifications, paying attention to every detail.

Made to measure
― Entry Model ―

The "Entry Model" translates La Scala's masculine and edgy worldview into a made-to-measure design. This model was created to allow more people to experience the brand's world.

Made to measure
― High-end Model ―

This "High-end Model" is crafted in one of Japan's top factories. Made from full canvas, this garment, while made to order, reflects Nobuhito Yamaguchi's concept down to the smallest detail, offering a bespoke-like feel and exceptionally lightweight comfort.

― Be Spoke ―

At "Be Spoke," Nobuhito Yamaguchi handles every step of the process, from taking measurements to cutting and sewing.
We tailor each suit to your individual body type and features, covering any concerns while enhancing your unique appeal. Enjoy a bespoke suit crafted with our accumulated skills and based on our own distinctive aesthetic.

The brand LA SCALA and tailor Nobuhito Yamaguchi

There is probably no other garment that reflects the maker's values and aesthetics as much as a bespoke suit.
The suits tailored by Nobuhito Yamaguchi, the tailor at La Scala, also strongly reflect his aesthetic philosophy.

At first glance, the suits that Yamaguchi creates might look like what is known as a "Neapolitan-style" suit.
However, that's not the true nature of it.

In fact, Yamaguchi's suits incorporate a mix of various techniques he has learned, not only from Italy and Britain but also from Japan, and he considers them tools to embody his own aesthetic.
And above all, the current style can be said to be a collaboration between the clients he has worked with so far and Yamaguchi, who has sincerely engaged with them.

What influenced Nobuhito Yamaguchi's aesthetics?

He says that he was influenced by various factors and constructed this aesthetic through his own unique interpretations.

First, there's the culture of the 1970s. Having grown up in the suburbs of Tokyo during his teens, Yamaguchi preferred minority genres to the popular movies, music, and fashion that his peers favored. Among those, he says he was most influenced by works created in the 1970s.
American films, especially those known as masterpieces, continue to offer new discoveries even as he gets older. For Yamaguchi, the heroes he often sees on screen are actors playing solitary outlaws, and he says he has been inspired by their worldview as men, as well as their love for family and friends.

Another significant factor was his encounter with a Neapolitan master craftsman whom he considers his mentor. He learned from him the techniques and style of suit making that he himself envisions as ideal, rather than just focusing on quality.

During his apprenticeship in his mid-twenties, Yamaguchi worked at one of Japan's leading sewing factories. After finishing work, he would single-handedly create numerous buttonholes by the next morning, competing with his colleagues. At that time, his interest in suit making lay in how high-quality he could produce.
At that time, he understood the beauty of traditional, British suits, but when he considered his ideal suit for himself, he felt a sense of unease with that style.

After gaining experience at various tailors and workshops in Japan, he traveled alone to Milan to work in a sartorial shop, which he had long admired, and acquired various techniques before returning to Japan. He joined Mitsukoshi Isetan and worked as a tailor while exploring his own style of suit making.

It was at this time that Yamaguchi had a fateful encounter with a master craftsman from Naples, and he came to see the ideal suit he had always wanted to create.
I was most impressed not by the technical aspects of the suits created by the master designer, but by the coolness of the image of masculinity he portrayed. His style possessed masculine strength but was never intimidating, combining it with the flexibility and lightness of a mature man, creating an image of a man who seemed effortlessly relaxed. It was the shrewdness of someone who lived life to the fullest that I found so stylish.
After that, Yamaguchi actually went to workshops in Naples, where he experienced the suit-making process of master craftsmen and established his own style.

Pursuing a style that is uniquely LA SCALA and unlike any other.

I explained Yamaguchi's background in the previous section, but now I will explain how his unique style was established.
The only way to truly improve one's skills as a tailor is to actually make suits for many customers. With each order, Yamaguchi grapples with his thoughts, confronting both the customer and himself.
The biggest obstacle Yamaguchi faced during his formative years was his body type, which is unique to Japanese people.

Generally speaking, compared to Westerners, Japanese people tend to have thinner chests, broad shoulders, and a more rounded upper body, as well as bowlegs in their lower body, making it difficult to look good in a suit. Yamaguchi has been taking on the challenge of creating suits that look good without sacrificing comfort, despite this body type.
When translating the ideal image of a man into the details of a suit, a natural shoulder slope and chest volume were essential, but neither of these is well-suited to the Japanese physique.

In contrast, Yamaguchi's suit features a jacket that first gives off a masculine impression.
The collar is set slightly higher, and the shoulder width is also made a little wider. This allows for a visually beautiful and natural slope, even for those with broad shoulders.
While the chest area has a slight volume, the deep darts and strong shaping from the waist to the hem create the illusion of a larger chest volume. Furthermore, to balance the shoulder and chest widths, the wide lapels are gently turned inward, visually adding volume to the chest area and creating a naturally masculine silhouette.
Of course, we've also achieved a lightweight feel by utilizing various technologies and selecting materials that we've cultivated over the years, ensuring that comfort isn't sacrificed.

The trousers, too, are designed to harmonize with the jacket's overall style without disrupting its overall feel.
A drawback of skinny pants is that they can bunch up around the calves, emphasizing bowlegs and making legs appear shorter.
On the other hand, Yamaguchi's trousers might appear slightly wide when viewed from the side, but the impression they give from the front is completely different. The center crease of the trousers runs straight from the waist to the hem, creating a line that falls to the floor, visually making the legs appear longer and slimmer. Furthermore, by setting the waist position higher, the suit as a whole is beautifully unified from the upper body to the lower body.

What kind of style do you propose to the wearer, and what path do you aim to take in the future?

If I had to put it into words, I would say it's "a suit that best showcases the sophisticated Japanese person who lives their own way without being bound by authority or conventional wisdom."

• Who's tailor: Nobuto Yamaguchi
• After graduating from Bunka Fashion College, he acquired the fundamentals of tailoring at one of Japan's leading factories. He then traveled to Milan, Italy, to further his skills. Upon returning to Japan, he joined Mitsukoshi Isetan. Inspired by a Neapolitan master tailor he met at a trunk show, he began visiting Naples during his vacations. Based on the techniques he learned there, he created suits that embody a powerful, masculine beauty and a light, comfortable feel, establishing himself as a unique and unparalleled tailor. In 2014, he launched his own brand LA SCALA , which he continues to operate to this day.
• Click here for the official La Scala brand Instagram.

What lies beyond "made-to-measure" tailoring at Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building ?
A suit that conceals physical imperfections .
- A craftsman favored by a man who deeply loves Neapolitan suits: Tadaaki Narita, owner of "The Wine Gallery"
Tailor Nobuhito Yamaguchi x Shoemaker Yohei Fukuda: What I Learned Overseas and What's Next



・The process of creating a custom-made suit. What is Su Misura, where the quality becomes more apparent the more you wear it?
- "Lupin the Tailor" by Nobuhito Yamaguchi, who will bring their style to life.
・A top-of-the-line coat entrusted to a model aiming for the world stage—a "ultimate" long coat tailored exclusively for KUYURI.
A father's heartfelt wish entrusted to his child: "A custom-made suit to give as a gift for his child's first birthday."

・Return to La Scala brand TOP page
・Click here for the official La Scala brand Instagram
・Click here for other articles related to "orders"