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Addict Clothes Visit

Winthorpe

New in Town
Messages
40
Location
Seattle, WA
I haven’t contributed to this forum so far, but just came back from a trip to Tokyo that included a visit to Addict Clothes at their main store in Shinjuku. Some of what I found out might be interesting for others as well.

Addict Clothes is a Japanese brand (founded in 2006) that specializes in making jackets based on British motorcycle jackets from the 40s/50s/60s. Most of their jackets are leather jackets, but they make waxed cotton jackets as well. In addition to clothing they are also a dealer for British Vintage motorcycles. Prior to Addict Clothes their founder, Satoshi Ishijima, was a dealer for Vintage jackets from the UK. Even today they are still selling Vintage jackets at their Shinjuku location.

During my time in Tokyo I was looking to purchase a leather jacket. I’m 6’5”, which makes it impossible to buy anything off the rack in Japan. Made to order was my only option. Prior to visiting Addict Clothes I stopped by Tenjin Works as I knew that they do MTOs with extra sleeve and body length (just like Aero does).

I did however prefer the aesthetics of the jackets made by Addict Clothes, but from looking at their website it looked like they were only making jackets up to size 42. So, while not having much hope to be able to buy one of their jackets, I stopped by their Tokyo store anyway.

Satoshi Ishijima, the founder and owner of Addict Clothes, speaks English well, which made communication very easy for me (even when talking about some of the smaller details). The big surprise right off the bat was that they do MTOs including adding extra sleeve length in sizes larger than 42! He even gave me an English catalog that lists all their leather jackets including measurements up to size 46.

Prior to visiting Addict Clothes I saw one of their jackets at Rolling Dub Trio in Asakusa. It’s a cooperation between Rolling Dub Trio and Addict Clothes based on their BMC (AD-10) jacket in sheepskin with some custom details. I absolutely loved the look of that jacket, but was told that it would not be made in my size…

Addict Clothes had the AD-10 jacket in waxed cotton in size 44 in stock. I tried it on (wearing a thin short-sleeve shirt) and it fit almost perfectly. All I needed was one size up (46) to allow for some layering and added sleeve length!

Then Satoshi brought out a size 42 in horsehide for me to check out and I was sold. The leather and craftsmanship were the very best I had ever seen on a leather jacket (Aero Leather and RMC are some of the other brands I’m familiar with in person). I spent a fair amount of time going over each detail and was deeply impressed. All the materials they use on the AD-10 are sourced from within Japan. They even use zippers that are made especially for them to their own specifications.

The horsehide they use is thick yet supple with a slight sheen to it. It is not from Shinki. They have a different Japanese tannery that they work with to have it made to their custom specifications. It was just perfect. Prior to visiting Addict Clothes the Shinki horsehide used by RMC was my favorite leather, but this one felt even better to me.

The AD-10 comes with a Grey wool liner that can be removed. It’s held in place by buttons on leather tabs (rather than a zipper). The jacket liner itself is made from a great locking Blue/ Black/ White Tartan cotton fabric. To top it off the belt buckle is covered with leather as well!

I came back the next day to run the fit by my wife (she approved) and ordered an AD-10 in Black horsehide in size 46 with added sleeve length. Their current fabrication time for the AD-10 is about 3 months. I should have it around September/ October, just in time for winter.

Satoshi has an older AD-10 (around 6 years old I believe) in sheepskin that is exhibited in the store. It’s a tea core leather with a Brown base and a Black layer on top. Over time the top layer wore off in certain areas to reveal the brown base. That jacket almost made me switch to sheepskin, but their horsehide was just too special to pass on. Note that their horsehide is not a tea core leather.

The overall experience was great, and Satoshi was very pleasant to talk to. He is a calm, down to earth character the seems to deeply enjoy what he is doing. All the folks in the store ride British Vintage motorcycles, parked in front of the store. I believe Satoshi currently rides a Velocette. They had at least 2 more Velocettes for sale exhibited in the store (among many other Vintage motorcycles).

I’ll post of pictures of my jacket once I receive it later this year. Here is a picture of the AD-10 in horsehide in size 42:

AD-10 Horshide.jpg
 
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Winthorpe

New in Town
Messages
40
Location
Seattle, WA
Here is a link for a Rolling Dub Trio blog post on the current collaboration AD-10 jacket between Rolling Dub Trio and Addict Clothes. You can use Chrome to translate it (right-click and choose [Translate to English]).
 
Last edited:
Messages
10,989
Location
SoCal
Thank you for your great write-up!
I follow Addict and Satoshi on Instagram, but even though the jackets look good in the photos it's so much better to hear about them first hand. I envy you and your experiences. Please post a review on your jacket once it arrives, and include lots of pictures ;).
 

AeroFan_07

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,347
Location
Iowa
Very very nice! Looking forward to seeing your review, and let me one to say, thank you for supporting a small, family run business such as this! The jackets look amazing in quality as well... :)
 

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