We're having an extremely cold winter for the first time in a while. Fashion industry folks say woolen and down coats start selling when the highest temperature of the day falls below 10 C, and fly off the shelves when it drops below 5 C. That's exactly what's happening this year.
But were apparel makers prepared, that is the question. Because we've had mild winters in recent years, many of them seem to have failed to have enough products ready for this cold weather and have been left stamping the ground in frustration at missing the opportunity.
This is the first winter in a long time that I've seen lots of women in Tokyo wearing Max Mara coats imported from Italy. Woolen coats still win the hearts of elegant, not-so-young women. When was the last time they were selling so well?
On the other hand, down coats and jackets -- casual items for winter -- have consistently had good sales. Other than Uniqlo's Ultra Light Down, which is in a class of its own, Moncler is the top-selling down brand, with Canada Goose pushing hard for the spot for the past two years or so.
Short down jackets by Moncler cost 150,000 yen to 200,000 yen each, while Canada Goose products are priced from 60,000 yen to 100,000 yen. On Nov. 3 last year, the Canadian company opened its first storefront in Japan in Sendagaya, Tokyo, which is a bit like an enclave away from more built-up areas. Still, about 200 people lined up at the shop on the opening day.
Canada Goose, whose logo shows the Arctic Circle, makes products designed for athletes, adventurers and other professionals. The company boasts that its products protect you from the cold even when the temperature drops to minus 50 C.
Among many down brands, Moncler and Canada Goose stand head and shoulders above the rest in Japan, which I think is an indication of a very Japanese mentality: People fear being left out for not wearing the same clothing as everyone else.
Years ago, a magazine carried an article encouraging young mothers to wear a Moncler down jacket when visiting local parks for the first time with their toddlers to meet other mothers. I hear this article served as the first trigger for the must-have Moncler myth.
In the meantime, long leather boots, which used to be a must-have item for fashionable people, have almost disappeared this winter. One theory says long boots are difficult to coordinate with skirts below the knees, which are in vogue. That's a convincing theory, but it appears not to be the case.
Long boots were replaced by short sheepskin boots, namely those by UGG. I've got a pair myself, which quickly became my favorite because they're easy to slip on and off and move around in. But from what I've seen women wearing on the train, even sheepskin boots don't come close.
Be it winter or summer, about 70 percent of today's women seem to wear sneakers. They come in all variations and colors -- from canvas and leather to high-cut and platform, in white, black and charcoal gray. They just wear sneakers! Many women put them on even when they're elegantly dressed, making me feel like saying, "Sneakers don't go with your outfit." I seem to be in the minority nowadays -- these women don't care and say they're easy to walk in.
Sneakers are also generally cheaper than boots. I suspect many women now have a lazy mind-set in which they choose a particular brand of sneakers and find the right size, and just continue buying the same stuff. Now sneakers are the main footwear among women who can't be bothered with their appearance. This country has become a strange sneaker paradise. I wonder if women's footwear should always be so relaxed and casual.
Miura is the editor at large of WWD Japan.
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