The Joseph Abboud brand has gone through a number of ownership changes since it was founded in 1987. But for the last three decades there has been one constant: Onward Kashiyama.
The Japanese company, which also owns J. Press, was among the brand’s first licensees in 1995 and the relationship has endured since then.
When WHP Global, the current owner of the Joseph Abboud brand, purchased the intellectual property of the label from Tailored Brands in 2020 for $115 million, the deal was limited to the U.S. and Canada, and the Onward license came along as part of it. Two years later, Onward acquired the trademark rights in Japan, allowing it to create its own collections and expand the Joseph Abboud footprint in that country independently.
Now Onward is celebrating its long relationship with the label by hosting the brand’s founder on a whirlwind trip around Japan beginning on Sept. 21 and lasting for 10 days.
Joseph Abboud
Courtesy of Joseph Abboud
“I’m going to tour four cities: Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe,” Abboud said. “This is the 30th anniversary of Onward Kashiyama’s license for Japan and is a real testimonial that the brand still means something.”
Abboud said over the past three decades he has developed “more of a personal relationship and partnership with the [Onward] team. It’s not just a traditional licensing agreement, which so often doesn’t work. Many of the same people have been there from the very beginning, including the head of design.”
Although Abboud doesn’t design the Japanese collection — or the American one, which is carried exclusively at Tailored Brands stores — he admires how the Onward team has stayed true to the heritage, but also modernized it.
“It’s more of a lifestyle brand than a classification,” he said. The collection is broken up into four sub-brands: Black Label, which is the high-end offering; Joseph Abboud Mountain, which was established in 2019 by the founder as a sustainable outdoor brand; Joe Cotton, which is centered around organic cotton materials, and Joseph Abboud Space, a home collection.
The Joseph Abboud Japanese collection pays tribute to the brand’s heritage.
Courtesy of Onward Kashiyama
“It’s like seeing your kid grow up,” Abboud said. “For a number of years, I was directing the creative and would visit Japan or they would come here.” But even though he’s no longer involved in the U.S. business, “I’ve always kept in contact with them,” he said of Onward. “I’ve always been impressed with the quality, the shops and the presentation of the collection there. Japan is the shining star of the brand.”
He added that in Japan, unlike in the U.S., menswear is not viewed as “a stepchild. The Japanese really embrace menswear.”
To celebrate the milestone, Onward has created a 30th anniversary collection for fall that it will showcase in its 50-plus stores. Abboud said he owns all of his personal images and archives and shared those with Onward to support the creation of the anniversary collection.
“We are happy to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Joseph Abboud business in Japan with the great support of the founder, Mr. Joseph Abboud, and his upcoming tour to visit our signature shops and meet with our very loyal customers,” said Yosuke Ueno, head of the Joseph Abboud business at Onward. “His design philosophy with fabrics that ‘coexist with nature’ and the creation of comfortable, high-quality clothes is overwhelmingly embraced by many of our customers.
“We hope that the next 30 years, while evolving with the times yet staying true to Joseph’s brand ethos, will bring continued success with our partnership with Joseph Abboud as well as Onward Kashiyama’s many other global partners. We truly believe this is a special brand that has enriched the lifestyle of our customers and we welcome Joseph to Japan for this very special occasion.”
Joseph Abboud’s Japanese collection.
Courtesy of Onward Kashiyama
Abboud said he’s looking forward to his Japanese trip and is eager to retain a formal creative working relationship with Onward going forward. “It’s a milestone for me too,” he said. “When you make your first collection, who knows if you’ll make it to your second? There are a lot of casualties in this business.”
AloJapan.com