United Arrows

Image of United Arrows
Author(s): 
Release Date: 
May 18, 2021
Publisher/Imprint: 
Rizzoli
Pages: 
352
Reviewed by: 

United Arrows serves as a chronicle, a diary of sorts, about a revolution and the trajectory of a retailer and brand that have been in business for 30 years in Tokyo. For all but the extremely informed of fashion cognoscenti United Arrows has been an open secret, but the bulk of fashionphiles are most often focused on Europe and the United Sates, except for a handful of Japanese brands that have risen to ubiquity.

The reader must remember that United Arrows was born when the term influencer hadn’t even been invented, and that the internet was a pipe dream. Yet United Arrows was already leading the charge when it came to branding, emerging brands, merchandising, and styling that were hitherto unknown to most consumers and readers other than those who resided in Japan.

They were one of, or possibly, the very first multi-brand retailers who understood street wear, the mix of high and low, and the possibility of amazingly successful collaborations. This book is a paean to themselves as well as to the world of fashion, and we as fashionphiles have much to thank them for—yet they remain an open secret some 30 years later.

This is a monograph that informs, educates, and possibly makes you shake your head in disbelief because it is very possible that what began in Tokyo and grew into to a retail empire as well as a brand didn’t start in Europe or the United Sates. United Arrows is also overflowing with amazing photographs and interviews that testify to the juggernaut that it has become in 30 years.