Cover Setchu at Univers One Rockwell (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
Setchu at Univers One Rockwell (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
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Satoshi Kuwata’s Milan-based label Setchu transforms clothing into an exploration of movement, instinct and body-conscious design
For Satoshi Kuwata, fashion begins not with a silhouette, but with instinct.
In the Milan studio where he designs his gender‑fluid label Setchu, Kuwata often folds a piece of paper between his fingers and watches how light and shadow play along its creases. The gesture is deliberate, tactile and encapsulates everything the brand stands for: design rooted in instinct, movement and a nuanced dialogue between cultures.
The Japanese designer builds his work around a simple, almost elemental principle: clothing should move with the body and not against it. “Some designers use hand stitch for decoration”, he said, “but we use it for functionality because we prioritise movement, and not many can do it. It’s a really classic way.” He sees every seam, fold and fastener exists for purpose. With Setchu, every garment invites participation.
It is this philosophy that gave life to the origami jacket, the piece that won him the LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers, one of modern fashion’s most significant accolades. He beat a field of more than 2,400 applicants from 15 countries to take home the €400,000 prize and a year of mentorship from LVMH’s experts. Asked which of his pieces shows his personality the most, he said, “I think the origami jacket. This gave me the LVMH prize.” Like the paper form it references, the jacket folds, shifts and transforms.
Above Satoshi Kuwata (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
Satoshi Kuwata (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
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When he founded Setchu in 2020, its very name, drawn from the Japanese term Wayo Setchu, meaning a meeting or compromise between Japan and the West, signalled the brand’s purpose: design forged at the intersection of cultures and histories. “Kyoto gave me a deep respect for silence, simplicity and ritual,” he said. “London taught me experimentation.”
Setchu is a product of his experiences but also of Kuwata’s own desire to reconcile opposites: utility and experimentation, discipline and spontaneity. Shirts unzip to allow free wrapping. Denim trousers are oversized enough to double as skirts. Safari jackets conceal handles in their collars, transforming into carryalls. Even garment bags can become impromptu dresses. Each piece is designed to be worn in multiple ways, shaped as much by instinct as by pattern.
This deepened during his spring-summer 2026 collection, inspired by a trip to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and a collaboration with LVMH Métiers d’Art. Kuwata worked alongside local communities supported by the Jafuta Foundation and Batoka Creatives, creating woven palm pieces and observing everyday dress practices. He was struck by what he calls “a peculiar way of dealing with items of clothing, oblivious of shapes and sizes, relying instead on the primal gesture of moulding and wrapping things around the body.” In that gesture, he saw a reflection of Japan’s own sartorial heritage: the timeless logic of drape, the intelligence of form shaped by hand.
The spring-summer 2026 collection reflects that sensibility. A palette of sky blues, soil browns and rainbow tartans echoes the misty falls, while garments explore transparency and fluidity. Boxing shorts and gym bras sit alongside military jumpers, hakama trousers and shrunken peak-lapel blazers. Gendered divides blur, not through pronouncement but through construction. Clothing, Kuwata suggests, should not prescribe but propose.
Read more: Inside Setchu's debut at Milan Men's Fashion Week
Above Setchu spring-summer 2026 (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
Above The 2023 LVMH Prize-winning jacket by Satoshi Kuwata (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
Setchu spring-summer 2026 (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
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Above Satoshi Kuwata presents his (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
Satoshi Kuwata presents his (Photo: Courtesy of Univers)
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That sensibility extends to his fragrances, created in close collaboration with master perfumer Julie Massé of the renowned French flavour and fragrance house Mane and represents a blend of Japanese tradition with Western fragrance craftsmanship. “Usually how you can make a good product depends on how good the relationship with the nose is,” he explained. Yuzu, which he wears in the morning, is deliberately quiet. Tatami, worn in the evening, he describes with a naughty smile as “really sexual… inspired by sex on tatami”. The scents are deeply inspired by personal hygiene rituals, Japanese bathing and, for Kuwata, memories of fishing in Japan. Each bottle is handmade, inspired by a traditional Japanese tea box, each slightly different—a tactile, intimate object, considered as a garment.
Hosted by Univers, Kuwata recently brought Setchu to Manila for its Southeast Asian debut. The launch showcased both his clothing and the new fragrance line, giving local audiences a full sensory experience of the brand. During the visit, he wandered through Intramuros and Casa Manila, absorbing the city’s layers and details. Asked to describe Manila as a scent, he immediately thought of calamansi, the sharp citrus fruit used in local cooking. “I want to do something with that,” he says, half in jest, half in intent. For Kuwata, observation, curiosity and sensory experiences are inseparable from design.
Across continents and disciplines, a pattern emerges. Kuwata designs not for display but for exchange between cultures and craft traditions, between fabric and body. QR codes accompany many garments, linking to demonstrations of multiple ways to wear them. They are practical but also symbolic: design is incomplete without interaction.
Setchu’s expansion in Manila and the launch of Setchu Parfums show philosophy in practice. Whether through a jacket that folds and transforms or a scent that shifts over the course of a day, Kuwata asks only that the wearer notice, engage and inhabit the design. After all, rainbows, the seasonal signature of spring-summer 2026, appear and dissolve, reminding us that the beauty of design often lies in its impermanence and the space it creates for individual experience.
Syrah is Tatler Philippines’ Power & Purpose editor, where she spotlights extraordinary journeys shaping the Philippines and Asia. She covers business, innovation, impact, and culture—chasing the people, ideas and forces shaping how we live and think today.
