*This article reflects the information available as of February 2020. This event has already concluded.

Levi's®, the giant of the denim world, officially offers bespoke, tailor-made jeans called "LOT No.1." This special service, available only at a limited number of stores worldwide, is being held as a limited-time order event at Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building 7th floor = Men's Authentic. We interviewed Mio Yamamoto, Asia's first Levi's® tailor, about the meaning and enjoyment of bespoke jeans.

Bespoke jeans crafted by the first Asian Levi's® tailor.

Jeans, which originated as workwear for coal miners at the end of the 19th century and have now become one of the most popular casual wear items in the world, are the origin of the brand. Levi's®, a brand that continues to fascinate everyone from core enthusiasts to highly fashionable people, offers a service called "LOT No.1" where you can have a one-of-a-kind pair of perfectly fitting, tailor-made jeans made. Are you familiar with this service?


This service, which is offered in only a very limited number of stores worldwide, including San Francisco, New York, Paris, and London, and is exclusively available in Asia at the Levi's® Harajuku Flagship Store, will be available for a limited time of three days (reservations required) from February 20th (Thursday) at a special corner on the 7th floor of the ISETAN MEN'S building.

A tailor is a top-level craftsman who handles every step of the process, from consultation and measurements to pattern making, cutting, basting, fitting, and sewing. We had the opportunity to speak directly with Mio Yamamoto, the first Asian tailor, who has a large clientele and is scheduled to showcase her skills at this event.


"After working on costume production for stage productions and other events, I ended up working at the tailor shop in the Levi's® Store Shinjuku. The appeal of Levi's® is that even with a single model or style, there are countless ways to wear and enjoy them depending on the person. I wasn't exactly a fanatic, but the more I learned about jeans, the more I became fascinated by this point."

Mr. Yamamoto, however, completely defied the image of a "burly, craftsman-like man" that one might imagine from his position as Levi's®'s first Asian tailor; he was a beautiful woman with slender arms. I frankly asked him about this impression.


"At the tailor shop that handles customization, there are elderly customers who are very knowledgeable about jeans, saying things like, 'I've been around since the original of this reproduction model was produced,' and there were times when I wondered if I was really good enough. Even now, I'm learning something new every day. But on the other hand, there are also many younger customers who know nothing about vintage jeans, and they aren't particularly interested in jeans themselves, but they want to enjoy customization, so the response as an entry point has been tremendous. More than I thought, our customers aren't just enthusiasts, and there are many beginners as well. The same goes for our bespoke 'LOT No.1'; some people own all kinds of models and order it simply for the perfect sizing, while others are wearing jeans for the first time in their lives. Athletes, in particular, often have extreme body types that are different from the average person, so they say that jeans (not made of stretch material) were never an option for them."