While the term "makers" often refers to those working in the digital arts and crafting fields, the Maker Faire, a maker festival held in Silicon Valley, USA, is a swirl of enthusiasm among people creating everything from handicrafts and crafts to agricultural products like honey and coffee. The rise of this "maker movement" is driven by the emergence of 3D printers, the opening of workshops equipped with cutting-edge equipment, and the spread of e-commerce. It could be said that these advances in digital technology have dramatically lowered the barriers to individual creation and sales. This is certainly true in the field of clothing and fashion accessories, which are inherently enjoyable and can be made yourself. Fashion seems to be returning to a pre-industrial revolution production and distribution system of small-scale, direct sales that does not rely on mass production. In this feature, we report on the trends of makers, who have the potential to become a new force in fashion, different from both fashion and fast fashion, and explore what changes they may bring in the future.

■Establishment of a New Infrastructure

First, we want to focus on workspaces where anyone can make clothes. Last June, the first coworking space specializing in fashion, "coromoza," opened in Harajuku, Tokyo. It's a fully equipped workshop with all the necessary equipment for clothing production, from professional-grade digital sewing machines and irons to laser cutters, digital textile printers, and even a photography studio. Membership fees start at 21,000 yen per month, with day memberships starting at just 250 yen for 15 minutes, making it a more affordable option. There are currently between 50 and 60 members, most of whom are students and young people in their 20s. It was founded by Nishida Takushi, originally a director of a fashion e-commerce site. Why did Nishida, who comes from an internet background, create a shared atelier that emphasizes "creation"?

"I originally entered the fashion industry through the internet, so I was aware of the pros and cons of the internet in fashion. To be honest, you can't fully convey the appeal of a product through online shops alone. When I ask students who have studied fashion, they can't tell the difference between a 300,000 yen product and a 7,000 yen product just from a photo on the web. With the rise of online shops, the local select shops that I used to frequent with their unique product selections are gradually falling out of fashion. I was skeptical of this situation, and began to want to be involved in fashion that was more realistic."

Although Nishida made the transition from the digital world to a place of real-life creation, he also felt that the structure of the fashion industry was outdated compared to the internet industry. In today's fashion business, there are high barriers to entry for young creators trying to do something new. 。

"In the internet industry, if you have talent you can start a business with just 100,000 yen, so it tends to attract young talent and energy. On the other hand, the fashion business's industrial infrastructure was established over 50 years ago. It is still a system in which manufacturers who hold exhibitions six months in advance and receive orders bear the risk. In the past, the premise was that wholesalers would buy the products, and there was a period for production, but now inventory is held in storage, so the business model must actually have changed.

I know someone who owns a fashion brand that is like a bakery. It is a store that doubles as an atelier, where the designer makes what they want that day and sells the finished product. Such a minimalist world is possible in fashion, but most people are dependent on the system and are only able to create standardized products."

■What is missing from fashion today is the ability to make

With the idea of changing the structure of the fashion industry, what interested Nishida the most was the act of "making." "I was influenced by a project called 'THEATRE,yours' by 'THEATRE PRODUCTS.' The project sells patterns and fabrics and aims to teach people how to make clothes by holding workshops where they can experience the process. Designer Takeuchi Akira says, 'There are many ways to enjoy food, from fast food to high-end restaurants, and if you cook for yourself, you understand the value of each dish. However, fashion these days is simply consumed, without any involvement of your own hands, so people no longer understand why clothes cost what they do, or the value they have. Surely making things yourself can create a different way of enjoying them.' I really resonated with him."

Manufacturing workshops equipped with the latest equipment are one of the ecosystems supporting the maker boom, along with the preceding 'Fab Labs' and 'Tech Shops.' Originally, the amateur creators who gathered in these workshops gained customers by connecting with online sales channels such as the handmade goods marketplace 'Etsy.' However, "coromoza" is currently reluctant to expand online, instead preferring to strengthen its function as a place for people to connect in real life. As a first step, it held its first exhibition, "WORKS," last fall. It also regularly holds pattern-making workshops for actual clothing production. "I feel a sense of crisis that if things continue as they are, Japan's fashion industry will no longer be able to produce domestically. The dire situation, including serious labor shortages in regional factories, is appalling. Eventually, I would like to connect young designers with these factories and create diverse forms of fashion." Nishida's ambitions are high, and his challenge has only just begun. We hope to see "coromoza" as a base for the development of brands that propose new values in fashion. (We will feature the joint exhibition "WORKS" in Part 2.)