Style Resume. Kobayashi Setsumasa #8

2025.11.19

Text： Kenichi Aono

Edit： Suzuki Yusuke

Whether it's fashion, music, or sports, there is a style that only each person can express in any genre. "Style is Everything." That's right, someone once said that style is everything. "Style Resume" is a series of interviews with adults who, as the name suggests, have style, and is updated every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Our 15th guest is Setsumasa Kobayashi, representative of <. . . . .RESEARCH>, a man who follows his own path in everything from outdoor activities to custom bikes.

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08. The transition from a shoe store to a clothing store is quite difficult.

One day, Tobe-kun (Tobe Tetsu), who played saxophone in Hikashu (a band formed in 1978), told me, "If you just take care of the dog while the owner is away on vacation, you can have free rein in his big house." At the time, I had no reason to refuse, so I accepted immediately and was having a great time there, when suddenly, one day, the front door opened. I instinctively asked, "Who is it?" and he replied, "Who are you?" It was the owner, Kogure Toru (photographer) (laughs). Our relationship continued from then on, and being able to thoroughly check out Kogure's wardrobe, which was full of second-hand clothes, was an invaluable experience for me as a young person. At the time, Kogure's office also doubled as the atelier for Kogure Hideko's (illustrator, Kogure Toru's wife) brand, 2CV, so I was able to see the process of how clothes were made.

Around the same time, I was frequently visiting the TAKEO KIKUCHI atelier, where I got to know the pattern makers and fabric specialists. At that time, when I was about to launch GENERAL RESEARCH, I already had seven items in mind, so with their help, I was able to create my first collection.

It's quite difficult to go from a shoe store to a clothing store. Because I don't know the size of clothes, I would bring old clothes similar to what I wanted to make to meetings. Perhaps the hidden theme of GENERAL RESEARCH was to find clothes that fit me well.

The look from GENERAL RESEARCH shows that it reflects the things and events that caught Kobayashi's attention at the time.

Profile

Setsumasa Kobayashi (CEO of . . . . RESEARCH)

Born in January 1961 in Asakusa, he is the representative of . . . .RESEARCH. He runs the mountain brand Mountain Research and the custom bike brand RER (Riding Equipment Research), and he also produced the campground Suigen-no-Mori Camp Land, which opened in 2021, and occasionally holds an event called "ANARCHO MOUNTAINEERS." His attitude of freely moving between the city and nature and enjoying it freely has captured the hearts of many fans.

Instagram @ anarchomountaineers009