Outdoor’s Next Pivot in China: The City
Japanese label nanamica has opened its first China store on Wukang Road (March 7).
Founded by Eiichiro Homma and Takayuki Fujii, the brand is known for translating outdoor performance into urban, everyday clothing — using technical materials like Gore-Tex together with clean, minimalist designs.
What makes this interesting is the urban framing of outdoor.
As the outdoor/athleisure market continue to expand (into/across mainstream and streetwear consumers), there is growing space for urban interpretations of outdoor/technical wear.
Much of China’s outdoor growth is happening in cities like Shanghai, where consumers want clothing that works across commuting, travel, and weekend escapes. In general, there just isnt access/proximity to the types of environments that necessitate extreme technical gear in most Asian centers.
That’s where many Asian outdoor brands may have an edge. Labels like Goldwin (Japan), KOLON Sport (Korea), and nanamica design (Japan) outdoor wear as urban daily uniform — technical, minimal, and versatile.
Barbour (UK) is another brand that is well positioned for this pivot.
As China’s outdoor market matures, the opportunity may increasingly belong to brands that understand what “outdoor” means inside the Asian city.
