ZOZO NEXT, Inc. (Headquarters: Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture; CEO: Kotaro Sawada) will unveil a new collection of products and prototypes that fuse traditional crafts with advanced technology at TOKYO PROTOTYPE, an urban creative festival taking place from January 29 (Thursday) to 31 (Saturday), 2026. These products will later be available for purchase through the company's official website.
ZOZO NEXT has been actively involved in various projects related to Japanese crafts, including joint research on developing new textiles that combine traditional crafts with advanced and interaction technologies, and the Artisan project, which aims to re-evaluate and revitalize Japanese crafts through their web media "fashion tech news." Building on this foundation, the company is launching "Yobiiro," a new project designed to awaken the five senses, emotions, and dormant sensibilities within people. This experimental initiative explores forms that help perceive subtle changes hidden in everyday life—such as light, temperature, fragrance, sound, and texture—found within various materials and crafts.
The exhibition explores the theme of how Japanese crafts might transform through today's technology to shape future lifestyles. Products and prototypes developed through collaboration between designers, traditional craftsmen, and advanced technologies cultivated through past partnerships will be unveiled for the first time. Visitors can experience lighting that fuses the texture of 300-year-old Nao handmade paper with phosphorescent materials, lacquerware using heat-resistant resin while maintaining the traditional texture of lacquer, and vases combining smart materials that change color with temperature alongside ceramics.
ZOZO NEXT will continue to deliver creative value supporting future lifestyles through collaborative efforts between various traditional crafts and advanced technologies.
Exhibition Products
*In addition to products, prototype works will be exhibited.
| Product Name | Partner/Designer | Technology/Technique | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hoshizakai | Nao Handmade Paper (Saga Prefecture) / ZOZO NEXT | 3D paper modeling, handmade paper | Fusion of washi paper and functional materials, 3D paper structures |
| URUSHICA (multi-purpose bowl, deep bowl, sake pourer, sake cup) | Shitsurindo (Fukui Prefecture) / ZOZO NEXT | Lacquering process, injection molding | High heat resistance (microwave compatible) |
| PIXEL WEAVE – Hakata-ori – (CARNATION, PEONY) | Nishimura Textiles (Fukuoka Prefecture), Hana Mitsui | Hakata-ori weaving, jacquard weaving, mounting | Visual effects including retroreflectivity and phosphorescence |
| Hitotose (Vase, Wall Clock Wood) | Secca (Ishikawa Prefecture) | Ceramics, decorative coating techniques | Color changes with temperature |
| THERMO TEXTILE Series #01 "camp" Coaster | Himuro Design Studio | Jacquard weaving | Design changes with temperature |
Exhibition Details
- Name: TOKYO PROTOTYPE
- Dates: January 29 (Thursday) to January 31 (Saturday), 2026, 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM
- Location: Various locations throughout Toranomon Hills and TOKYO NODE
(2-6-3 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo; Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line "Toranomon Hills" Station, Ginza Line "Toranomon" Station) - Admission: Free (no advance registration required)
- Website: https://tokyoprototype.jp
About "Yobiiro"
Yobiiro is a project that connects modern technology with local crafts from across Japan and proposes them to society as products, awakening the five senses, emotions, and dormant sensibilities within people. It perceives subtle changes in daily life—such as light, fragrance, and temperature—as "colors" that enrich our days. Like priming water that brings forth abundant water from a well, it creates opportunities for people to gain new sensations. Through collaboration with production regions, craftspeople, and technologists, while exploring values meant to be felt rather than measured by functionality or numbers, it gradually sketches future landscapes by summoning the "first drop" into everyday life.
About ZOZO NEXT, Inc.
With the mission to "Create the Future of Fashion and the NEXT Big Thing," ZOZO NEXT aims to create a world where more people can enjoy fashion by imagining user challenges in the fashion domain and solving them through the power of technology. The company conducts R&D through the "ZOZO Research Institute," a research facility that quantifies and scientifically elucidates fashion, and "MATRIX," which aims to create new businesses for the ZOZO Group across six thematic areas that will influence the future of fashion.
