doublet Joins Forces With Singapore's CLUB21 for a Limited Edition Collaboration

For doublet‘s Fall/Winter 2023 collection, Japanese designer Masayuki Ino brought a unique sense of chaotic fun to the Paris Fashion Week runway. Introducing the world of voguing mice, fluffy bunny costumes and models that walked with a sense of urgency in below zero degrees weather, the brand recreated the experience in Singapore earlier this month in tandem with a celebration of the collaborative partnership with the city’s CLUB21 retailer.

Over the COMO Weekend, the brand was brought to the Southeast Asian city for the first time to present its debut trunk show. The cult Japanese label alongside its designer highlights his eclectic imagination in Singapore and continued its grunge-like theme into the collaborative t-shirt with CLUB21. Updating the show experience in Singapore, the designer spoke to Hypebeast in an exclusive conversation about how the CLUB21 t-shirt collaboration came to be and how he restructured the show in Singapore.

Take a read below at what Ino had to say.

Hypebeast:  Your FW23 doublet collection brought chaotic joy to the runway when you debuted the collection at Paris Fashion Week. What elements of the show did you adapt to Singapore? What is the inspiration behind the collection and how it was presented?

Masayuki Ino: The inspiration behind the collection is the antithesis of such a world where people see those who are different from themselves as “monsters”. We felt and expressed a world full of diversity, where differences coexist, displayed through fashion. In Singapore, to bring out the beauty of the fact that we are all different (“monsters”), not only professional models but also Club21 store staff, doublet staff, and myself disguised as monsters walked the runway together as models.

What was it like showing in Singapore for the first time? How did it differ from Paris and Tokyo?

To make it different from past runway shows in Paris & Tokyo and since this was the first trunk show in the new Club21 at COMO Orchard, we focused on how to make the customers enjoy the show and feel uplifted. The trunk show included interactions with customers after the show and the commemorative photo shoot with the team. It was a very good memory.

Fluffy costumes were a memorable part of the season and spoke to the youthfulness and not taking itself too seriously. What were the animal motifs indicative of to you?

The fluffy animal costumes were a main part of this season and spoke of youthfulness and not taking things too seriously. The animal costumes represented Monsters to me. For example, you’ll be very popular if you wear an animal costume in an amusement park. But what if, you saw someone wearing the same costume on a train? Surely, you’ll be horrified and not understand the reasoning, even if the person inside is the same as in the amusement park. This is what I expressed.

You unveiled a monster mash of Vans and Suicoke footwear collaborations for FW23. Can you discuss the design process behind these pieces?

The shoes for the Suicoke collaboration use a Vibram sole called Furoshiki (meaning wrapping in  Japanese). Their appearance of the shoes being wrapped in Furoshiki overlaps with the imagery of a  bat perched on a tree branch. This struck me as ideal for the monster-themed collection, so I invested attention in both materials and details to achieve a resemblance to authentic bats.  

The collaborative t-shirt with CLUB21 brings back the ‘90s concert culture and groupies aesthetic — what was the creative inspiration behind the co-branded tee? And what are some of your favorite bands/rock bands?

Mannequins wearing doublet’s archive pieces were placed in the new Club21 at COMO Orchard store in racks through pipes. These mannequins were carefully selected for Club21 Singapore. I designed this for the success of their Singapore tour. My favorite band is THE BLUE HEARTS from Japan.

Your brand has a global cult following that takes you from Japan to Paris and everywhere in between. There is a burgeoning market for streetwear and beyond expanding in Southeast Asia.  What is your take on Singapore’s streetwear scene? How might it compare to other areas within  Southeast Asia or other parts of the world?

In Singapore, I saw many Y2K styles. The healthy, skinny style combined with the warm weather gave the impression of a realistic style that was fashionable, but not too trendy or fake. 

Can you share any preview of what we might expect from your upcoming FW24 collection? Or any other exciting projects coming up?

Yeah, I am working on the AW24 collection right now. I am excited to see how it will turn out!!!