Koenji’s shopping arcade will transform into a runway—for one day only.

On February 28, 2026, a fashion event centered on vintage culture will take place at the Koenji pal Shopping Arcade in Tokyo. Set within the approximately 200-meter-long covered street, shops specializing in second-hand clothing and creators will present their styling in a project that reexamines the relationship between fashion and the city.

Event Poster/Courtesy of KOENJI pal

Fashion has long been presented on dedicated runways, separated from everyday life. Yet clothing has always been born in the city, evolving alongside the people who wear it. This event returns fashion to that origin, where an ordinary shopping arcade becomes its stage. What appears here is not new collections, but vintage garments shaped by time.


Vintage as a Layer of Time
Koenji is widely known as one of the world’s leading destinations for vintage clothing. In its dense network of small shops, garments sourced from across Japan, Europe, and the United States are continually reinterpreted within new contexts. Vintage clothing is not merely a remnant of the past—it carries the memory of different eras, acquiring renewed meaning when worn in the present. Through styling, garments are edited anew, gaining fresh narratives.

Scene from last year’s event / Courtesy of KOENJI pal

In this show, each participating shop constructs its own styling perspective, turning the entire arcade into a continuous runway. Rather than watching from fixed seats, visitors encounter the event while moving through the street itself. Fashion is no longer confined to a designated space—it breathes within the city.


Reclaiming the Relationship Between Fashion and the City
What unfolds beneath the arcade is not simply a show, but an expression shaped by the space itself. In a place normally filled with everyday shoppers, fashion emerges unexpectedly. The distinction between runway and street dissolves, and the boundary between observer and participant becomes fluid. Here, fashion exists not only as something to be viewed, but as an integral element of the urban environment. Interwoven with the sounds, light, and presence of the city, garments reveal new dimensions. It is a reminder that fashion lives alongside the city.


When the Street Becomes Fashion Again
This event can be seen as an attempt to liberate fashion from exclusive venues and return it to the city. Within the everyday setting of a shopping arcade, clothing takes on new meaning—defined not by brand authority, but by individual perspective and sensibility. Vintage garments act as a medium connecting past and present, while the city becomes the place where these narratives intersect.

For one day, the Koenji arcade becomes a space where fashion’s original freedom and creativity are made visible once more.