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  • visvim

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  • Founded in 2001 by Japanese designer Hiroki Nakamura, visvim has grown from an independent sneaker brand into one of the most influential forces behind Ametora (“American traditional”) style on the planet. Born in Kofu, Japan, Nakamura grew up in 1980s Tokyo where he developed a fascination with American style. Encouraged by his parents to travel abroad, Nakamura relocated to Alaska, where he camped and snowboarded while occasionally staying with indigenous Americans. After returning to Japan, Nakamura took a design job with the Japanese division of Burton Snowboards, during which time he grew increasingly fascinated with vintage American clothing, of which he amassed an impressive collection. After eight years with Burton, Nakamura decided it was time to set out on his own, founding visvim as a casual sneaker brand supposedly named after he noticed “Vis” and “Vim” in Latin dictionary. visvim’s sneakers, in particular the FBT (inspired by indigenous American moccasins and named after English new wave group Fun Boy Three), rapidly gained a cult following and helped convince Nakamura to expand; by 2005, visvim had grown into a fully-fledge streetwear brand producing a full range of clothing, footwear, and accessories. In the years since, Nakamura has methodically recast visvim as a “future vintage” fashion label that merges old-world production techniques (such as natural dyeing and hand-sewing) with contemporary technologies like GORE-TEX® so successfully that it has redefined the relationships between Americana, Ametora, and luxury.