I have enthusiastically covered previous collections from DAIWA PIER39, probably the coolest tech clothing brand founded by a fishing company in the world. It’s great stuff, both wearable and useful, and its new sister label, DAIWA LIFESTYLE, is only taking that theme further.
Whereas the DAIWA PIER39 is a combination of American heritage and functional fishing gear informed by the tenure of its creative director at BEAMS, the DAIWA LIFESTYLE seems to be a lot less modern and a lot more useful.
“Put down the fishing rod and let your imagination run freer in nature,” reads a mission statement (roughly translated) on the DAIWA LIFESTYLE website. “Be flexible, be cool, with fishing as the starting point.”
For those unfamiliar, DAIWA is a 70+ year old sports brand operated by Globeride, Inc. It is a legit fishing company focused on lures, rods, whatnot.
Meanwhile, DAIWA PIER39 is a fashion clothing line launched in 2019 with Shunsuke Nakada as the design lead. His clever hybridization of Japan’s Heavy Ivy fashion trend (think grooming meets LL Bean) with contemporary technology has made him a runway hit across the country, with collections typically selling out as quickly as they fall.
DAIWA LIFESTYLE is the new offering, debuting for Fall/Winter 2022 with a variety of similarly accessible gear.
Unlike PIER39 however, DAIWA LIFESTYLE is more of a proper technical clothing line. Everything is dark navy and designed with purpose, from the GORE-TEX PRO down jackets packed with nearly a dozen pockets to backpacks loaded with straps, notches, and storage space.
It’s serious stuff, with outerwear being offered as “PRO” and “BASE” (basically, with or without GORE-TEX and priced accordingly) and cuts intended for maximum ease of movement rather than ‘fit pic flex’. ‘. That is, DAIWA LIFESTYLE leans towards a slimmer silhouette than DAIWA PIER39.
Clearly, DAIWA PIER39 is the fun, retro trend label and DAIWA LIFESTYLE is its function-first counterpart. Obviously, there are plenty of ways to dress in either, but that’s the gist of their designer ethos.
DAIWA PIER39 has its own strengths, but DAIWA LIFESTYLE is great because it’s simple, it’s great because it’s weather resistant, and it’s great because it has a quietly traceable spirit through that one-tone palette and simplified shapes.
Pretty wild that a company better known for its fishing gear would be able to produce such nifty stuff, anyway. It just goes to show that good design is good design, regardless of the application.
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Source: news.google.com