Chitose Abe, Creative Director of Sacai
avant-garde / luxurious materials
Origin: Tokyo, Japan
Breaking down the dichotomy between casual and formal clothing
Chitose Abe is the creative director of Sacai, a label she founded in 1999. The brand is renowned for its prodigious technical ability, splicing two items of clothing together to create a sum that is greater than its parts. Abe owns 100 percent of her business, which allows her complete creative control and freedom to select any commercial considerations she chooses.
“My collections are based purely on my creative instincts, maybe I’m an idealist, but I am a firm believer that if you’re producing well-designed products at the right price that your business is destined to flourish.”
Prior to founding Sacai, Abe worked at Comme des Garçons as a pattern cutter under Rei Kawakubo and later as a member of Junya Watanbe’s design team. Although trained at one of Japan’s most famous and storied design labels, Abe’s aesthetic elevates and simplifies that of her homeland to finely wrought classics.
Today, the label has over 90 stockists worldwide. In 2019, Sacai released collaborations with Nike and earphone label Beats by Dre. Abe is married to Junichi Abe, the founder and designer of Kolor.
