CFCL Spring 2023 Ready-to-Wear

Halfway through a preview of Yusuke Takahashi’s comprehensive CFCL collection for spring, the 37-year-old Tokyo-born designer pulled up a video on his iPhone of his three-year-old daughter. Wearing a mini version of the pale-pink and yellow knitted ‘Pottery’ dress, the stand-out hit from his nascent line, the pre-schooler was shown at a recent CFCL pop-up store event holding up her favorite pieces from the collection, one by one, explaining why she loves them. (Though the label, whose name is an acronym of ‘clothing for contemporary life’ is only two-years-old, Takahashi has already developed a kidswear offering.) “She has just started ballet lessons, so we did a ballet-inspired line for kids,” he said with a smile, adding: “That’s another reason why it’s so important the fabric can be washed in a washing machine.” In addition to being adorable, Takahashi’s pint-sized protégée makes a compelling sales assistant for the brand, which has established a clear identity and mission in a short space of time. Founded on the designer’s conviction that good clothes should be for everyone—an egalitarian philosophy that defined his former boss, the late Issey Miyake’s label, too—CFCL’s recycled polyester pieces have an engineered springiness that means they fit people of all ages, genders and shapes. Takahashi is similarly single-minded about sustainability. In July 2022, CFCL achieved B Corp status with a score of 128—impressive, given that the median score for ordinary businesses who complete the assessment is currently 50.9. The only other fashion brand showing at PFW with B Corp certification is Chloé, which earned an overall score of 85.2 in October 2021.