A few years before we began stocking Cottle, we had been quietly following the collection — trying to understand the garments, the process behind them, and how the brand might fit within our selection. When the brand decided to present in Paris, we took the opportunity to see the collection in person. The craftsmanship, fabric selection, and subtle detailing immediately stood out. While there was a clear focus on denim — unsurprising given Cottle's roots in Kojima, Japan's denim capital — there also seemed to be something deeper connecting the collection. Pieces from the "Leaf Vein" and "Earth Wall" series felt aesthetically distant from the denim styles, yet somehow connected through a shared sensibility. The collection remained beautifully elusive until we visited Cottle's studio and the surrounding area of Kojima this past March.

We travelled from Tokyo to Okayama by Shinkansen, where we were met by Toshiaki Watanabe, founder and designer of Cottle, and his assistant in a vintage Mitsubishi Delica. Over the following days, Toshiaki guided us through the region the brand calls home — visiting a friend's photography gallery, the Cottle studio and shop, and several nearby towns connected to the area's craft history.

Through these conversations, his design philosophy became clearer. In the 1960s, Kojima gradually became the denim capital of Japan as factories producing traditional tabi footwear transitioned into denim manufacturing. Today, the region remains home to some of Japan's most respected artisanal denim makers. At the same time, the broader Okayama and Kurashiki areas hold deep histories of dyeing, weaving, spinning, and glassmaking traditions, many of which continue today.

It became apparent that these regional crafts heavily inform the way Toshiaki approaches clothing. A phrase he referenced repeatedly was onko chishin — roughly translated as "studying the old to understand the new." Rather than treating heritage techniques as nostalgia, Cottle applies them across the collection regardless of aesthetic direction. There is a quiet modernity to the garments, balanced by an enduring commitment to craft, and it is this tension that gives the brand its distinct identity.