Fashion x Seiyu! A Brand Collaboration Revolution to Create New Customers
Voice actor Shinnosuke Tachibana and long-established denim factory “Aoki Kofuku” collaboration items are now on sale! Releasing flared pants made of lustrous silk denim! | Aoki Clothing Co.
Japanese voice actors have been involved in a wide range of activities, and in recent years, collaborations between voice actors and fashion brands, as well as apparel production, have been attracting a lot of attention.
Some have even collaborated with world-famous brands! It is clear that Seiyu are becoming increasingly well known and influential.
Seiyu have become fashion leaders for fans of voice actors, and are even providing fans with new fashion experiences.
In this article, we will explore this interesting trend in detail!
| Table of Contents – Three apparel brands that collaborate with many Seiyu. – 3 collaborations with accessory and jewelry brands. – Brands produced by Seiyu. – Collaborations with Korean fashion brands. – Collaborations with local products (denim from Okayama, eyeglasses from Fukui). – Collaboration with international brand Valentino. – Japanese Seiyu✕Fashion Collaboration Summary |
Three apparel brands that collaborate with many Seiyu
First, we would like to introduce brands that have released collaborative products with many voice actors! Since collaborations with various voice actors are announced, this is a must-see shopping site for voice actor fans.
LIVERTINE AGE is a fashion brand that has collaborated with numerous voice actors. The product lineup includes T-shirts, hoodies, shoulder bags, and more, many of which are available for a limited order period.
Examples of collaborating voice actors: Emi Hirayama, Hitomi Sasaki, Ibuki Kido, Kento Hama, and many others.
Other brands developed by UDG Corporation: KANGOL, moz, etc.
■ R4G (Respect For Geeks)
R4G is a brand that fuses animation and fashion, and has collaborated with many voice actors. The product lineup includes T-shirts, hoodies, and shirts, many of which are sold on a pre-order basis.
Examples of collaborating voice actors: Yuka Nishio, Masahiro Ito, Aina Aiba, Daisuke Hirose, etc.
Other brands developed by BAROQUE : JAPAN: MOUSSY, SLY, etc.
Known as a store specializing in rock fashion, GEKIROCK CLOTHING has been actively collaborating with popular voice actors in recent years. In addition to limited items being produced under the supervision of voice actors, events are sometimes held where voice actors serve as store managers for a day and sell items in the store.
Examples of collaborating voice actors: Shinichiro Kamio, Hina Suguta, Miyu Takagi, Yuki Sakakihara, etc.
(Quote) Misuke Takagi, a voice actor who plays the role of Shinobu Inuyose of Peaky P-key, a unit within D4DJ, and other voice actors, released an item design for a collaboration with GEKIROCK CLOTHING to celebrate his birthday! The item will be on sale at the one-day store manager event on Saturday, September 9, the day after her birthday! | Gekirock News
3 collaborations with accessory and jewelry brands
We pick up examples of collaborations with accessory brands!
■ Q-pot.
Q-pot. is an accessory brand. In particular, their tie-up projects with popular voice actors have attracted a lot of attention. Many of the motifs are original, like the world of fairy tales, and it can be said that these collaborations have a high affinity with the tastes of the voice actor fan base. In addition, the fusion of the voice actors’ personalities has led to unique product development.
Nobuhiko Okamoto: “Q-pot. x Nobuhiko Okamoto” dream collaboration has finally come true! Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3
Daiki Kobayashi: Teddy Bear Boys “voice actor Daisuke Kobayashi” x Q-pot. Teddy Bear Cookie
Sho Karino: Bread-loving boy “Sho Karino” (voice actor) x Q-pot. bread COLLECTION
Wataru Komada: Halloween lover boy “Voice actor Wataru Komada ” x Disney/Q-pot.’s Halloween COLLECTION
■ THE KISS
Collaboration jewelry produced by Daisuke Namikawa and Noriaki Sugiyama of Stay Luck, respectively, has become a hot topic.
The jewelry brand Over Excellent is a Japanese brand that features “O.E. cut diamonds,” which are recognized around the world.
Voice talents Nagisa Aoyama serves as the brand ambassador model, and collaborative products are also being introduced.
Brand produced by Seiyu
This apparel brand is produced by voice actor Yoshiki Nakajima, and various voice actors have appeared as models or collaborated with the brand. In the past, there have been collaborations with Rena Ueda and Wataru Hatano.
Examples of voice actors who have appeared as models: Yoshiki Nakajima, Soma Saito, Fumiyoshi Shioya, Yurina Amami, and many others.
Other brands produced and collaborated with voice actors!
Please note that some of them are no longer available.
| Voice Actor Name | Brand name |
| Yuki Kaji | en.365° エンサンビャクロクジュウゴド |
| Yusuke Shirai | MIDORI |
| Takuya Egichi | EGUMI |
| Kensho Ono | NOIR.K *Not listed |
| Tsubasa Yonaga | Wingle |
| Ryohei Kimura | tear R drop |
| Natsuki Hanae | HanaH *Not listed |
| Kotaro Nishiyama | Inu Hikari Land |
| Shun Horie | glamb *Collaboration |
| Kaori Ishihara | Lee *Collaboration |
| Kento Ito | Lui’s *finished LiNoH *Collaboration, finished |
| Kaito Ishikawa | glamb *Collaboration, finished |
| Yui Ogura | HONEYui *Collaboration ended ANNA SUI *Collaboration ended |
Collaboration with Korean fashion brands
■ AiM:Øriginal × RADINEO | 60% – Asian Fashion Online Store
■ Ayasa Ito × letter from moon | 60% – Asia Fashion Online Store
The popular Korean fashion brand RADINEO collaborated with Aimi and letter from moon collaborated with Ayasa Ito, and their products were sold at the online store “60%” (sixty percent), which has 1,500 brands from Asia, for a limited time. The products are not limited to collaborations with brands in Japan.
This is not limited to brand collaborations in Japan.
Collaboration with local special products (denim from Okayama, eyeglasses from Fukui)
(Quote) Voice actor Shinnosuke Tachibana and long-established denim factory “Aoki Clothing” started selling collaboration items! Released flared pants made of lustrous silk denim! | Aoki Clothing Co.
Collaboration between voice actor Shinnosuke Tachibana and Aoki Clothing! Aoki Clothing Releases Flared Silk Denim Pants with Full of Luster | SPECIAL | Aoki Clothing Ibara City, Okayama Prefecture
■ [Okayama prefecture] Silk denim by Aoki Clothing and Shinnosuke Tachibana
Okayama Prefecture is the sacred land of denim!
This is a collaboration project between Aoki Clothing, a jeans sewing factory headquartered in Ibara City, Okayama Prefecture, which has been in business for 60 years, and voice actor Shinnosuke Tachibana.
The collaboration started when Mr. Tachibana stopped by Aoki Clothing’s Kurashiki SOLA store when he was working in Kurashiki and purchased a silk denim set-up at first sight. The denim used is made of silk, which is resistant to chafing noise and is also useful for voice recording.
It can be said that this is an example of a collaboration that developed out of the particularities of a voice actor’s profession.
■ [FUKUI prefecture] FACTORY900 from Aoyama Eyeglasses✕ Jun Fukuyama and Shinnosuke Tachibana
Fukui Prefecture is a center of eyeglass production, with over 90% of Japan’s eyeglass production concentrated in the city of Sabae. So, here is another example of collaboration between a company from Fukui Prefecture, which is famous for its eyeglasses, and voice actors (the two CEOs of BLACK SHIP).
The second collaboration model with voice actor Jun Fukuyama
fafj-002 col.911:clear pink – FACTORY900 Online Shop
Collaboration model with voice actor Shinnosuke Tachibana “Vol.2
fats-002 col.912:black / clear stripe – FACTORY900 Online Shop
Collaboration with companies in various regions allows us to learn about the local specialties of each area, and we feel that it also leads to the transmission of the appeal of traditional products through voice actors.
Collaboration with global brand Valentino
(Reference) Valentino releases the latest video of the project in collaboration with six voice actors｜Ayane Sakura appears in the video | Valentino Japan K.K. Press Release
There are also examples of collaboration with world-class high brands.
Valentino, a leading Italian luxury fashion brand, has partnered with six prominent Japanese voice actors as part of the “Valentino the Narrative II” campaign, which uses only the written word. Valentino has partnered with six of Japan’s most prominent voice actors to create a special film.
This is not a collaboration to sell any specific product that we have mentioned, but rather to discover the brand value of Japanese professional voice actors.
| ▼Valentino Narratives | Episode | Voice Actor Name |
| Episode 1 | Natsuki Hanae |
| Episode 2 | Natsuki Hanae |
| Episode 3 | Yuki Kaji |
| Episode 4 | Yuki Kaji |
| Episode 5 | Yuki Kaji |
| Episode 6 | Ayane Sakura |
| Episode 7 | Ayane Sakura |
| Episode 8 | Junya Enoki |
| Episode 9 | Junya Enoki |
| Episode 10 | Sora Amamiya |
| Episode 11 | Sora Amamiya |
| Episode 12 | Ryusei Nakao |
| Episode 13 | Ryusei Nakao |
Features of fashion collaborations
Other collaborations include “Hazama (ha | za | ma)” for Ayane Sakura and Koki Uchiyama and with “Shimamura” for Kaori Maeda and Sora Tokui.
Having seen examples of collaborations between voice actors and fashion, we feel that the following characteristics can be identified.
- Limited nature: Many collaborative products are sold in limited quantities and are highly rare.
- Incorporation of character elements: In the case of collaborations with voice actors themselves, it is not possible to use the popular characters played by the voice actors as they are due to copyright rights.
However, it seems that sometimes it is possible to subtly incorporate motifs of representative characters played by the voice actors themselves into the design.
Fans respond to such similarities and are pleased! - Event linkage: Talk shows, autograph sessions, and other events are sometimes held in conjunction with product launches.
- Spreading the word on social networking sites: Promoting through social networking sites such as Instagram and Twitter is effective.
- Overseas brands✕ voice actor brands: Some collaborations are with overseas brands that have discovered the value of Japanese voice actors.
Fan reaction and market impact
These collaborations have received a very positive response from fans. For voice actor fans, they are popular as special items that allow them to feel connected to their favorite voice actor. On the other hand, fashion brands are also succeeding in developing a new customer base.
- Diversification of voice actor merchandise: In addition to traditional drama CDs and DVDs, lifestyle fashion items are also becoming a part of the voice actor merchandise lineup.
- Renewing the image of fashion brands: By incorporating voice actor culture, brand images are being rejuvenated and diversified.
- Establishment of new marketing strategies: The fusion of entertainment and fashion is attracting attention as a new marketing approach.
Challenges and Prospects
There are several challenges associated with this type of collaboration with fashion.
- Consistency of brand image: Fashion brands need to be careful that the fusion with otaku culture does not damage their brand image.
- Pricing: Limited edition products can lead to resale and high prices. Pricing must be affordable to the original fans.
- Voice actors’ own sense of style: This is a part of the brand image mentioned above, but when a company makes an offer to a voice actor, I think it is important to use a voice actor with high fashion sensitivity, rather than choosing a voice actor based on name recognition alone, in order to market something that is highly fashionable.
By overcoming these challenges, collaboration between voice actors and fashion brands will bring new possibilities to both the entertainment and fashion industries.
Conclusion
We hope you have learned from this article that not only collaborations with character content such as anime and games, but also voice actors themselves are becoming more influential and fashion brand collaborations are becoming more popular.
Collaborations between voice actors and fashion brands allow voice actor fans to become aware of new brands.
In addition, many Japanese voice talents fans are young, so this is a good experiment for brands to aim for market development with a new approach to the younger generation, and each target group has a high affinity with the other.
Conversely, if you are targeting a slightly older voice actor fan base, we recommend collaborating with voice actors who are popular with that generation. The same goes for targeting voice actor fans outside of Japan.
If there is an affinity between the target demographic and the brand’s fans, it may lead to a good collaboration with a synergistic effect.
In this regard, I think it is important to select voice actors based on the brand’s target audience, not just on their name recognition.
As globalization progresses, collaborations between Japanese voice actors and domestic and international fashion brands are expected to develop further in the future.
This new form of culture, in which the worlds of voice actors and fashion are interwoven, will continue to attract attention as a trend as a new development in Japanese pop culture.
