Tamme, a brand that has garnered attention for its high-level creations, living up to the high expectations associated with its "former Sacai" background, will be holding a pop-up event from Wednesday, October 12th to Tuesday, October 18th. What kind of brand is Tamme, making its debut at Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building ? And what will be on display at the limited-time shop, along with the latest Fall/Winter 2022 collection? Designer Tatsuya Tamada gave his first ever in-person interview to the media.

View Tam products at the Mitsukoshi Isetan online store.

"Streetwear with a touch of sophistication," a modern take on military wear.

Tamme, a brand that mixes various existing concepts and styles—classic and modern, luxury and street, standard and avant-garde—based on military aesthetics and reconstructs them from a neutral perspective to create unique and refined streetwear, will open its first limited-time pop-up shop on the 6th floor Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building .

View Tam products at Mitsukoshi Isetan Online Store

After six years of honing his skills at leading Japanese designer brands, Tatsuya Tamada finally launched his own brand in the Fall/Winter 2021 season. We spoke with him at the Tam Spring/Summer 2023 exhibition venue about his career and the aspirations of the Tam brand.



"I decided to pursue clothing design and enrolled in Bunka Fashion College when I was 18. My motivation was the desire to create clothes that I myself would truly want to wear. While I did create women's clothing that was meant to be 'shown off,' including the piece that won the Soen Award, I was also making clothes for myself at the same time. After all, the way you think about creating something to 'wear' and something to 'show off' are completely different... I decided to start my own brand, Tam, as a men's brand that is meant to be 'worn'."

Tamada says he discovered vintage clothing during his middle and high school years, which sparked his interest in fashion. He was particularly drawn to military wear, finding its "many gimmicks and abundant functional details" appealing. Influenced by his mother, he became familiar with DIY and crafting from a young age, explaining that he "developed a liking for it in the same way as building plastic models."

In particular, his fascination with niche but sophisticated European items becomes clear when you look at the Tam collection that Mr. Tamada curates.

"Of course, it's not simply because I like it. Many modern clothes, such as techwear and workwear, are based on military wear, and there's a rational necessity to their structure and details. That's why Tam also uses military wear as a base, but creates 'refined streetwear' with elegant silhouettes. It might also be worth noting that we often use lesser-known but beautiful European pieces as our source material, rather than well-known, standard models."

A mix of various elements, resulting in a refined neutrality.

Simply rearranging and updating military wear is something many designers have done in the past. However, what makes Tam a truly unique brand is that it extracts specific elements from military wear, incorporates them into its own creative "black box," and mashes them up with various other elements to produce its own distinctive creations.


"Not just in military wear, but throughout the history of clothing and culture, there are countless wonderful products. I focus on each and every one of them, but without ever being bound by the subject or preconceived notions, and I always strive to create with a flat, 'neutral' perspective—this has been my fundamental concept of creation since my student days."

A neutral stance, one that is both meticulous and unbiased. This is perhaps what defines Mr. Tamada and the very essence of Tamme. The brand name Tamme itself is a fusion of the French words homme and femme (meaning man and woman) and the name Tamada.

"Tam is a men's brand. This doesn't mean it's gender-free, but rather it symbolizes our desire to create a refined street style that incorporates and embraces contrasting elements such as masculinity and femininity, classic and modern, luxury and street."

The way in which masculine ruggedness and feminine elegance, high-quality fabrics used in tailoring, and the functionality and silhouettes of techwear are intricately interwoven and beautifully fused together is truly unique to Tam. This is what Mr. Tamada calls "refined streetwear," which is edgy yet can be enjoyed on a daily basis.

I would also like to mention Zdzisław Beksiński, a Polish artist who had a great influence on Mr. Tamada. It was through encountering the works of Beksiński, known for his prolific output and versatility, that Tamada realized the beauty and strength of the coexistence of opposing elements, which led to his subsequent creative work.

"He was a talented artist who excelled in many fields, not just painting, but also sculpture and graphic design, and all of his works are wonderful. For my graduation project, which won the Soen Award, I chose Beksinski because it was my last project as a student, and I wanted to choose a theme that I truly loved."

Tam's encounters with artists, which are also connected to his brand concept, and his affection for European military wear, led him to adopt the "M89," a masterpiece field jacket of the Polish army, as the structural basis for his Fall/Winter 2022 collection.

The theme for Fall/Winter 2022 is "12+1 (Twelve Plus One)".

Now, let's take a closer look at the latest Fall/Winter 2022 collection and the items that will be exclusively available at the pop-up store. This season's theme is "12+1 (Twelve Plus One)," meaning the creations explore the number "13."

"Actually, during the previous season, while I was working on creating toiles (prototypes) and building the structure, I created several tilted details. I didn't specifically decide on the angle of the tilt; I was just following my intuition while considering the design and function, but most of them happened to be '13' degrees. I wondered if there was some meaning to this number '13' that was born from my intuition, and that was the starting point."

How should Tam define the number "13," which has different meanings depending on the community and can be considered both a lucky number and an unlucky number? Tamada connected it to the brand concept of "updating existing phenomena with a new structure," and sees it as acquiring entirely new value by adding "1" as a different element to "12," a number that forms the basis of life as a calendar and unit.

"This season, we're based on a modern classic style, combining military-inspired elements with classic and elegant fabrics like tropical and gabardine, creating a refined look from rugged pieces. Within that framework, we're expressing '12+1' by, for example, pairing a basic 'M89' field jacket with a 'C1' military vest, or by incorporating coordinating items like caps and gloves. Furthermore, we're adding new functionality or altering the overall look by tilting the details by '13' degrees."

This season, all items except for some knitwear feature this "13" degree tilted detail. By adding new interpretations and items ("+1") to something universal ("12"), Tam has created a collection ("13") that is updated in a modern way.

"Rather than showcasing samples and combinations of items and cultures, I want to create new value and style by updating existing things, deconstructing and extracting their constituent elements, and fusing them with other elements. In that sense, the word 'reconstruction' fits Tam's creations better than 'reconstruction'."

Limited edition items that can only be tried on at the pop-up store will also be available!

From Tam's latest collection, Mr. Tamada himself introduced the limited edition models that will be featured at this pop-up event.

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"The base is the Polish Army's 'M89' field jacket. It's a simple and elegant half-coat, but the left side incorporates a detail made from a very old British Army magazine vest, tilted at a 13-degree angle."

It features a variety of numerous pockets arranged in a complex pattern, some of which are designed to flutter with body movements, and it has enough storage capacity to carry modern personal belongings such as tablets and laptops.

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"These are pants made from a different material than those available in our regular line, and they can be worn as a set with the 'GABARDINE MAGAZINE VEST M89'. The silhouette is based on wide-leg pants made in France in the 1930s, and the side seams are tilted by 13 degrees to integrate with the front opening, and the hem opening detail is added as an extension of that."
"It's simply a matter of tilting the lines, but it's interesting how the structure changes and functions are added when a body is placed inside."

Not only these items, but the entire Tam Fall/Winter 2022 collection will be on display, making this pop-up event full of highlights.

View Tam products at the Mitsukoshi Isetan online store.