Kapital Mens
Kapital is a brand that resists tidy definitions. Founded in the 1980s by Toshikiyo Hirata in Kojima, Japan’s denim capital, the label has grown from a small family-run operation into one of the most distinctive names in global fashion. Toshikiyo, a former martial arts instructor, discovered his passion for American denim while teaching in the U.S. He returned to Japan and opened a denim factory in 1984, soon followed by a vintage store, laying the groundwork for what would become Kapital Japan – now known worldwide for its experimental approach to heritage workwear.
In the early 2000s, his son Kiro Hirata joined the brand after working as a designer for 45R. With his arrival, Kapital clothing began evolving beyond traditional denim, incorporating layered patchworks, folk references, and hand-finished details that blurred the lines between craftsmanship and conceptual fashion. Kiro brought a new sense of playfulness and complexity, pushing the brand into more radical territory while staying grounded in process.
At the heart of Kapital clothing is a tension between opposites. The brand balances technical mastery with irreverent graphics, historical references with surrealist silhouettes. Whether through sashiko-stitched coats or hand-dyed knits, each piece reflects a label that values process, imperfection, and invention.
Today, Kapital men’s clothing is worn by a global community drawn to its off-kilter charm and tactile storytelling. Each collection builds on the last, always pulling from the past but never bound by it. The brand has come to represent a type of menswear that prizes individuality, character, and creativity.
Key Design Features
Kapital’s menswear collections draw on centuries of Japanese textile tradition while riffing on global countercultures, from West Coast psychedelia to American military surplus. The result is a visual language that feels both studied and spontaneous. You’ll find Kapital jeans repaired with boro techniques, chore coats dyed with persimmon tannins until stiff and sculptural, Kapital shirts made from five vintage flannels stitched into one, and bandana prints overlaid with sashiko embroidery.
Construction ranges from precise to deliberately offbeat, with many garments bearing signs of wear - fading, fraying, sun damage - not as ornament but as embedded memory. Kapital clothing embraces imperfection as a design tool, using distress as a way to tell a story. The garments are designed to feel like they’ve already lived a few lives before they reach the wearer.
Indigo remains central to this approach. Known in Japan as ai-zome, the natural dye has deep roots in the country’s textile history. Kapital continues this legacy through its Kountry sub-label, exploring complex dyeing and washing processes that give each piece a distinct, already-lived-in feel. Rather than chasing perfection, Kapital menswear leans into character, creating clothes meant to evolve over time.
Kapital knitwear is one of the brand’s standout categories - traditional jumpers reimagined through the surreal, with folk motifs, textural contrasts, and intentional asymmetry. Alongside these are crisp Kapital shirts, wide-leg Kapital jeans, and boxy Kapital jackets, many nodding to vintage workwear or Japanese military design. Even within a single item, you might find contradictions - classic tailoring set against frayed hems, or heritage fabrics paired with mesh panels or raw patchwork.
Key Products and Collections
Kapital men’s clothing is defined by texture, humour, and contrast. At Couverture & The Garbstore, we focus on key staples that showcase the brand’s eclectic, process-driven approach - standout Kapital shirts, Kapital jackets, and Kapital’s signature knits.
Their Kapital sweaters and sweatshirts skew intentionally strange - look for hand-knit faces, oversized silhouettes, and mismatched panels. Kapital t-shirts often feature raw hems or hand-drawn graphics, adding subtle eccentricity to everyday staples.
Kapital shirting is another strong point. Expect reconstructed flannels made from five or more vintage panels, sun-faded colours, repurposed checks, and contrasting collars. Many Kapital shirts feature patch pockets arranged in ways that feel off-centre but never arbitrary.
When it comes to outerwear, Kapital jackets and Kapital coats often reference military or workwear silhouettes from boxy chore coats, MA-1 bombers, and lightweight field jackets, but are pushed into exaggerated forms with layered folk textile overlays. Kapital denim jackets combine Kojima-rooted craftsmanship with a sense of irreverence: washed, shredded, or appliquéd.
Denim runs throughout the menswear offering. Kapital jeans come with heavy fading, patched knees, or asymmetric hems, echoing Japan’s wabi-sabi ethos of finding beauty in the imperfect. Whether raw, repaired, or dyed, Kapital denim is never static.
Accessories play a strong supporting role. Kapital’s Fastcolor Selvedge Bandannas are small in scale but rich in detail, referencing vintage Americana while showcasing Japanese dye techniques. These feature heavily in our Scarves & Bandanas category and can also be found in our Patchwork & Quilted Pieces and Japanese Brands edits.
Styling and Similar Brands
Kapital clothing invites experimentation. Layer their louder pieces such as patchwork shirts, face-knit jumpers, bandana jackets, with quieter staples from across our Japanese Brands edit. Try pairing with jeans from CIOTA or A.PRESSE, or grounding the look with tailored trousers from Still By Hand or nanamica. The brand’s irreverent visual language complements directional labels like Rice Nine Ten just as well as it suits considered basics from Sunray Sportswear & Sublime.
Explore more in our Knitwear, Shirts, or Outerwear Collection categories. Not ready to go full Kapital? Accessories like Kapital scarves, socks, or one of their offbeat Kapital t-shirts offer a subtle point of entry.
Cultural Impact
Kapital has developed a global cult following, worn by everyone from Virgil Abloh to ASAP Rocky and stocked by a curated roster of retailers around the world. Despite the acclaim, Kapital clothing has remained independent and idiosyncratic. Stores in Japan are decorated according to regional themes, and production remains tightly connected to its roots in Okayama.
The brand has shaped a new menswear sensibility, one that values slow process, vintage influence, and handmade irregularity over trend-led design. From Kapital jackets to experimental Kapital knitwear, its garments continue to influence process-based, anti-uniform fashion across the globe. Designers and stylists alike turn to Kapital Japan as a reference for how traditional craft can push into something playful and strange without losing depth.
Shop Kapital Men’s clothing at Couverture & The Garbstore. We stock a curated range of Kapital jackets, Kapital knitwear, Kapital shirts, Kapital jeans, and accessories, available online and from our Notting Hill store. Based in the UK and shipped worldwide, ideal if you’re looking to buy Kapital clothing in store or online.
