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In her prime
Young designer Akiko Ogawa has built her a Primary label
into an established brand in just three years. Martin Webb
discovers the secrets behind her rapid rise.
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| Fiercely feminine looks
from the fall/winter a Primary collection |
Tucked away on a secluded Aoyama side street, designer Akiko
Ogawa's atelier is a bustling hive of activity. It's
the first day of a biannual sales drive and the office is
filled with clipboard-wielding men and fashionably dressed
buyers snapping digital photos of models changing in and out
of glamorous get-ups from the fall/winter collection for a
Primary.
At first glance, the immaculately attired, long-haired Ogawa
could be mistaken for one of the fitting models. But the 29-year-old
graduate of Kuwasawa Design School actually sits at the helm
of this thriving fashion business, which since its launch
in 2001 has established a solid reputation for top-notch ladies'
tailoring and cultivated a loyal fan base among smart and
savvy Japanese power dressers.
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| Over-achiever Akiko Ogawa |
Despite an air of detachment, Ogawa is disarmingly modest
about her rapid rise to fame. "It would have been definitely,
absolutely impossible for me to have done this on my own,"
says the former designer for apparel conglomerates Onward
Kashiyama and Sanei International, where she worked on top
brands like Paul Smith. "Many people have helped me;
that's the most important thing. There was an element
of risk, but if there hadn't been people who were willing
to share it with me... it wouldn't have grown to what
it is today."
A Primary is targeted at confident and powerful women, and
that seems to be a direct reflection of its over-achieving
designer's personality. Ogawa, who hasn't taken
a vacation for more than six months, runs her atelier with
efficiency bordering on ruthlessness, often working into the
night when she finds there are fewer interruptions. The smoothness
of her company's operations has made it an attractive
proposition for the investors who will further expand the
label by opening three new stores later this year-the
first in Ogawa's native Osaka in August, the second
in Yurakucho Hankyu in September, and the third in Aoyama
Bell Commons in October.
Having her own boutiques is very important to Ogawa. "Sometimes
there are items that I feel are important to my message but
that buyers for department stores and select shops don't
like. Unless you see the complete collection, you don't
fully understand my message," she explains. "The
new stores will allow me to get it across much better."
Fashion forward
While Ogawa is pleased to have more time to devote to the
creative side of a Primary, the designer still feels hindered
by economies of scale. "I feel like I'm on my
way to fulfilling my ambitions" she says, "but
there are still things that are unsatisfactory. For example,
if I can't yet make my own fabrics or order a unique
color from a textile manufacturer because we only buy small
volumes, it's very tough. I want to sell overseas too,
but we're not big enough to do that yet either."
Despite such challenges, the latest a Primary collection,
which hit stores last week, showed off the full extent of
its designer's glamorous creativity. Ogawa says that
her creative process begins at Paris textile trade shows,
and her choice of fabrics expresses her vision of a confident
and sassy woman. For fall/winter 2003/2004, that translated
to slinky silks, raunchy leathers and lots of luxurious lace.
Sporting bleach-blonde dreadlocks, models in long, high-heeled
boots and draped in lots of leather accessories with chains
and studs gave an aggressive vibe to the show.
Ogawa, who was raised Catholic, admits that there may have
been a bit of the flamboyant Osaka spirit at work but is well
aware that such sexually potent looks are a rarity on the
Tokyo fashion scene. "Tokyo fashion has a very conservative
image," she says. "There are some sexy looks
in Tokyo, but they all seem to be obvious things just there
to impress guys-there's nothing coherently sexy."
But Ogawa's high-impact sartorial chic is designed
specifically with a certain kind of customer in mind. "I
love cool and beautiful women, and I wanted to design for
them," she says.
Ogawa is keen to explain that this collection also allowed
her to do something she wanted to do for a long time. "I've
been wanting to explore sharp, masculine suits for ages, but
somehow it always ended up being feminine. This time, I've
finally been able to make the sharp, slim suits that I've
always wanted to make," she says with a grin of satisfaction.
"On the other hand, I've used lots of lace in
making items that look very girlish and elegant, almost like
a slip dress."
Although a Primary is already on sale in top boutiques like
Barney's New York in Shinjuku and Yokohama and in Beams
House in Marunouchi, the firm is looking to its three new
stores to maintain its fast-paced growth and allow its inspirational
designer even more creative freedom-an exciting prospect
indeed.
Photo
credit: Courtesy of a Primary
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