Yohji Yamamoto

Yohji Yamamoto is a Tokyo-based fashion house built around the designer of the same name, born in 1943. It is known for black, draped, asymmetric clothing, shows at Paris Fashion Week since 1981, and Y-3, a long-running partnership with adidas. The operating company, 株式会社ヨウジヤマモト, is private and majority-owned by the listed Japanese investment firm Integral.

Research date: October 24, 2026. Prices and availability change, so each one below is dated and sourced. Facts are marked as confirmed (official or filed sources), third-party (media, retailers, company-data sites) or analysis (my own reading).

A note on fit for this site: Yohji Yamamoto is Japanese, and a pillar of Japanese avant-garde fashion. It is not streetwear in the logo-and-drop sense, but its influence on street style runs through Y-3 sneakers, New Era collaborations and the “all black” look.

Yohji Yamamoto at a Glance

Introduction to Yohji Yamamoto

Yamamoto’s clothes are known for black, oversized, draped shapes and a deliberate lack of polish. His early collection under the Y’s label focused on womenswear that reflected men’s garments, cut in uncluttered shapes with washed fabrics and dark colors (The Fashionisto).

The house matters because it helped establish Japanese designers in Paris, and because its Y-3 line helped start designer athleisure. Its current work is still shown at Paris Fashion Week: the Spring 2027 women’s collection was presented in early October 2026 and the men’s collection in June 2026.

Brand History and Background

Yamamoto founded Y’s in Tokyo in 1972, held his first runway show in 1977, made his Paris debut in 1981 and his New York debut in 1982. The Yohji Yamamoto line began at the same time as the 1981 Paris debut, and a joint-stock corporation was founded in 1984 (Wikipedia). A haute couture collection was presented in Paris in 2002.

In 2009 the company went into financial trouble. Wikipedia reports debts of more than US$65 million and says private equity firm Integral restructured the company, which was out of debt by November 2010. Umbrex describes the process as civil rehabilitation proceedings in 2009, with Integral supporting the restructuring.

Origin and Founding Year

Sources give several dates, because the brand, the company and the first collection are different things. The label began with Y’s in Tokyo in 1972. The Yohji Yamamoto name became internationally known after the 1981 Paris debut. A Japanese company profile lists the company’s founding as April 1972, while Wikipedia lists a joint-stock corporation in 1984. I use 1972 as the brand start, 1981 as the Paris debut and note the 1984 incorporation as a separate claim.

Founder, Owner and Creative Director

• Founder and creative director: Yohji Yamamoto, who also serves as creative director of Y-3.
• Owner: Integral Corporation (listed in Tokyo, code 5842) holds 87.9% of the voting rights in 株式会社ヨウジヤマモト as of December 31, 2025 (IRBank). A company-data site lists Integral as the parent.
• Management: company-data sites list Kazutomo Ohashi as representative (大橋一友).
• Other creative roles: jewelry designer Rie Harui is creative director of the Yohji Yamamoto by Riefe line, per WWD.

Headquarters and Country of Origin

Yohji Yamamoto is a Japanese brand headquartered in Tokyo. The company address is Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo (Mynavi). Flagship stores exist in Paris, London and New York, and the main lines are shown at Paris Fashion Week each season (Wikipedia).

Brand Mission, Vision and Philosophy

There is no formal mission statement that I could verify. Yamamoto’s public comments describe a philosophy of resilience and imperfection. At the June 2026 men’s show he said that even when times are hard, “you have to keep on living” (WWD). For the Spring 2027 women’s show, he declined to explain the collection and called it “just fringes” (WWD).

Inspiration Behind the Brand

• Menswear shapes for women: the early Y’s collection borrowed from men’s garments (The Fashionisto).
• The street: Yamamoto said he felt he had drifted too far from the street after about 15 years in Paris, which led him to approach adidas (The Fashionisto, third-party summary).
• Recent themes: shoulder construction for men’s Spring 2027; fringes, entanglement and unraveling forms for women’s Spring 2027 (WWD).

Yohji Yamamoto and Japanese Streetwear Culture

The house sits at the high end of Japanese design, but it connects to street culture in three documented ways: Y-3 (adidas), collaborations with New Era under Pour Homme, Y’s and Ground Y, and a sports-influenced Ground Y line. Y-3 is described as having helped start the athleisure trend (The Fashionisto). The Japanese label also pairs well with the broader “Japanese black” look that shaped Tokyo street style.

Brand Growth Timeline

Signature Style and Design Identity

• Colors: black above all. SS27 menswear added elemental gray and scarlet, per a runway-data site (T-Fashion, third-party).
• Silhouettes: asymmetric cuts, oversized coats, dropped-crotch trousers (The Fashionisto), and for men’s SS27, a study in shoulder construction.
• Details: grommets, abstract painted patterns and distressed knitwear in the men’s SS27 collection (T-Fashion, citing Numéro Netherlands).

Popular Collections and Product Categories

• Yohji Yamamoto (women’s) and Pour Homme (men’s): the main runway lines.
• Y’s: the first brand, now a separate line.
• Ground Y: unisex, gender-less line.
• S’YTE: an online-only brand.
• discord Yohji Yamamoto and Yohji Yamamoto by Riefe: further labels, including jewelry.
• Y-3: adidas partnership, sold through adidas and retailers.

The official online store describes S’YTE, Ground Y and Y’s among the brands it carries (THE SHOP YOHJI YAMAMOTO). A third-party guide counts thirteen lines on the house’s store, with Y-3 not among them.

Seasonal Collections and Drops

The house follows the fashion calendar: men’s collections in June and January at Paris Men’s Fashion Week, and women’s collections at Paris Fashion Week in March and September or October. Y-3 shows alongside the men’s week. Collaborations such as New Era are released as seasonal capsules rather than numbered drops.

Latest Collection and Upcoming Releases

The latest runway collections are Spring/Summer 2027: men’s (June 2026) and women’s (early October 2026), both in Paris. The official store also carries Autumn/Winter 2026-27 pieces, including a Ground Y x New Era collection. I did not find announced dates for the next shows, so I do not state any.

Limited Editions and Exclusive Drops

Capsule collaborations are the closest thing to limited drops. On the official store, one Y’s x New Era item (the knit bucket hat) is listed as sold out. I did not find numbered editions or regional-only releases.

Collaborations with Brands, Artists and Designers

Bestselling and Most Iconic Pieces

The house does not publish product rankings, so I cannot name a bestseller. The pieces most associated with it are oversized black coats, asymmetric jackets and Y-3 sneakers and sportswear, plus New Era capsules. For Pour Homme, retailers show structured jackets such as the Army Gabardine 3B Side Slit Jacket and shoulder-adjuster jackets.

Fabric Quality, Materials and Craftsmanship

The official store lists materials such as wool gabardine, army gabardine, leather and “zero count khadi” cotton in jackets. Y-3 SS26 emphasized summer viscose and crinkle viscose with raw edges, per a fashion-week site (third-party). I did not find a verified statement about Yamamoto’s fabric mills or tailoring methods.

Manufacturing Location and Production Process

I did not find a verified manufacturing breakdown. Garment labels and retailer pages give country of origin for each piece. Y-3 is produced within adidas’s supply chain.

Logo, Branding and Signature Details

• Y-3 name: the Y stands for Yohji and the 3 for adidas’s three stripes (brandvelle; The Fashionisto).
• Labels: each line has its own name (Yohji Yamamoto, Y’s, Ground Y and others). I did not verify details of label tags.

Pricing and Product Categories

Prices below are retail on the official store (USD) unless noted, seen in October 2026. Official-store prices change with sales.

Analysis: the main Pour Homme lines run from roughly $900 to over $6,000, while New Era capsules and Y’s or Ground Y pieces start closer to $120 to $400.

Sizing, Fit and Size Guide

The official store filters men’s items by XS, S, M, L and Free Size, and resale listings use Japanese numeric sizes such as Size 3 (for example, a Pour Homme x New Era T-shirt). The brand is known for oversized cuts, so retailer size notes matter. A resale listing for a New Era wool coach jacket described Japan Medium as US Small. Check the exact product page.

How to Style Yohji Yamamoto

Analysis, not brand guidance:

• All black: layer textures, such as wool, cotton and leather, in one color family.
• Oversized outer layer: pair an oversized jacket with slim trousers so the volume reads as intentional.
• Streetwear mix: a New Era cap and a plain tee under an asymmetric coat.
• Y-3: sneakers or track pants with simple black separates.

Target Audience and Customer Demographics

The main lines target design-minded adults who accept high prices. Ground Y and New Era capsules target a younger, streetwear-leaning audience at lower prices. I found no reliable demographic statistics, so I am not giving any.

Popularity in Japan and International Markets

Yohji Yamamoto has flagship stores in Paris, London and New York (Wikipedia), and a Japanese recruitment page describes it as a Paris collection brand with national hiring. I found no verified revenue split by country. A funding-data site lists 627 employees (PitchBook, undated); the Japanese recruitment site lists 566 as of August 2024. These do not agree, so treat employee counts as approximate.

Celebrity Endorsements and Influencer Impact

I found no verified paid celebrity endorsements. The house’s influence is through designers, editors and the global “Japanese black” aesthetic, not endorsement deals.

Sustainability and Ethical Manufacturing

I found no published sustainability report or certification for the house. I do not make any claims about materials or labor standards.

Where to Buy Authentic Yohji Yamamoto

Options include the official store (THE SHOP YOHJI YAMAMOTO), the brand’s boutiques, department stores and luxury e-commerce sites such as Farfetch. For Y-3, use adidas and its retailers. Secondhand pieces are common, especially from Japan, but require care.

Official Website and Authorized Retailers

• Official e-commerce: theshopyohjiyamamoto.com.
• Corporate site: yohjiyamamoto.co.jp.
• Retailers seen: Farfetch, plus independent boutiques that carry Pour Homme.

How to Identify Authentic vs. Fake Yohji Yamamoto

I found no official authentication guide. Practical steps: buy from the official store or established retailers, compare product details with the official site, check season and size tags, and be careful with prices far below market. For resale, ask for photos of labels, care tags and stitching, and check the seller’s history.

Resale Market and Collectibility

Resale is active, especially for collaborations and archive pieces. Examples from a Japan-based eBay seller: Pour Homme x New Era T-shirts pre-owned at about $137 to $181 and a cap at about $167, plus a New Era coach jacket listed at $499 (asking prices, pre-owned or new-other; eBay). Listings show asking prices, not completed sales, so treat them as indicative only. Farfetch also shows discounted retail pieces at 20% to 65% off.

Yohji Yamamoto vs Other Japanese Designer Brands

I did not collect comparable prices, and the details for other houses are widely reported but not re-verified here.

Recent News and Brand Developments

• October 3, 2026: Spring 2027 women’s show reviewed by WWD.
• June 2026: men’s Spring 2027 and Y-3 Spring 2027 shows in Paris.
• Autumn/Winter 2026-27: Ground Y x New Era collection on the official store.

Future Direction and Growth Potential

Analysis only, not a forecast:

• Strengths: a strong creative identity, continuing Paris presence and a new generation of customers through lower-priced collaborations.
• Risks: dependence on a founder who is 83, and the company’s 2009 history shows how financial missteps can hurt a creative house. I found no announced succession plan.
• Ownership: Integral is a financial investor, so a future sale or listing is possible, but nothing is announced.

Monthly and Annual Worldwide Sales and Profit Analysis

Business structure

株式会社ヨウジヤマモト is a private Tokyo company with an August fiscal year-end. Integral Corporation owns 87.9% and is listed, but Integral’s own results cover its whole portfolio. Y-3 revenue belongs to adidas and is not part of this company’s revenue. Figures below are in Japanese yen and come from company-data sites that republish Japanese public filings, so they are third-party and may differ slightly between sources.

Monthly data

No monthly revenue or profit is published, so I did not create monthly graphs.

Annual revenue (yen)

Revenue, ¥ billion, fiscal years ending August (Syukatsu Kaigi). FY2023 is ¥15.1 billion here and ¥15.2 billion on Mynavi. Each block is about ¥0.5 billion.

That is growth of about 14.6% in FY2022 and about 17.3% in FY2023 (calculated). I did not find a reliable FY2024 or FY2025 revenue figure. A Yahoo company-profile page shows a figure for FY2025 whose unit appears inconsistent with the earlier numbers, so I did not use it. A Japanese job site also reported a 114% year-on-year growth claim in a recruiting post, which is unsourced marketing language, so I did not use it either.

Annual profit

Net income as published in public notices and aggregated by Buffett Code (¥ million): ¥492 million in FY2020 and ¥1,664 million in FY2023, with total assets of ¥7,693 million at the end of FY2023 (Buffett Code). Operating profit and net profit for FY2021, FY2022, FY2024 and FY2025 were not available, so I did not chart profit. Two data points would not show a trend.

Data availability

Interpretation

The available data show revenue rising from about ¥11.2 billion to ¥15.1 billion in two years and a net income of ¥1.66 billion in FY2023. That suggests a recovery from the 2009 crisis and healthy profitability, but with only a few data points I cannot call it a long-term trend.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Yohji Yamamoto known for?

Black, oversized, asymmetric avant-garde clothing and the Y-3 partnership with adidas.

When was Yohji Yamamoto founded?

Y’s was founded in 1972, the Paris debut was in 1981 and the joint-stock corporation is listed as 1984.

Who owns Yohji Yamamoto?

Integral Corporation holds 87.9% of the voting rights as of December 31, 2025.

Is Yohji Yamamoto Japanese?

Yes, it is headquartered in Tokyo.

Is Yohji Yamamoto a streetwear brand?

Not strictly, but Y-3 and New Era capsules link it to street culture.

What is Y-3?

A partnership between Yamamoto and adidas, launched in 2002.

How much does Yohji Yamamoto cost?

Pour Homme jackets are roughly $1,400 to $6,800 on the official store. New Era capsule pieces start at $120.

Where can I buy authentic Yohji Yamamoto?

THE SHOP YOHJI YAMAMOTO, brand boutiques and authorized retailers.

How big is the company?

Reported revenue was about ¥15.1 billion in the fiscal year ending August 2023, with about 566 employees in August 2024.

What was the latest collection?

Spring/Summer 2027: men’s in June 2026 and women’s in early October 2026.

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Explore more in our Brands, Style Guides, Outfit Ideas and Clothing sections.

Sources

• WWD: Yohji Yamamoto Spring 2027
• WWD: Yohji Yamamoto Men’s Spring 2027
• Wikipedia: Yohji Yamamoto
• Umbrex: Yohji Yamamoto brand profile
• The Fashionisto: Y-3
• IRBank: Integral holdings
• Syukatsu Kaigi: company data
• Buffett Code: Yohji Yamamoto
• THE SHOP YOHJI YAMAMOTO (official store)

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