What happens when traditional Japanese craftsmanship meets the creative energy of Los Angeles? AKI offers one compelling answer.
On August 28, 2026, Japanese fashion stylist Kazue Mizushima introduced CURATED COLLECTION BY KAZUE at BaileyWick, the boutique inside The London West Hollywood. Created as a reflection of Kazue’s own aesthetic eye, the collection brings together distinctive fashion pieces selected specifically for the Los Angeles market, with Japanese sustainable fashion and art brand AKI making its LA debut.
At the heart of AKI is a belief that clothing can be more than something we simply wear. Born in Osaka, designer AKI has spent her career exploring the relationship between craftsmanship, tailoring, textiles, and individuality. Her journey took her from Japan to Milan, where she studied fashion design at the Instituto Marangoni, and later back to Italy to study traditional men’s tailoring techniques in Palermo, Sicily.
Her experience includes working at YOHJI YAMAMOTO FEMME, creating made-to-order womenswear, developing custom men’s gilets, and presenting a collection in Milan in 2015 as part of JAÀ Studio, an Asian designer collective.
Today, AKI’s work is defined by a distinctly personal approach to fashion. Instead of maintaining a traditional ready-to-wear inventory, the designer creates garments after receiving an order. The philosophy is simple but increasingly relevant: make fewer things, make them thoughtfully, and make them for the individual.
Traditional Japanese textiles play an important role in that vision. AKI develops original interpretations of symbolic Japanese motifs including Enso, Shippo, and Sayagata, commissioning them in unique color combinations to create textiles that feel simultaneously historic and contemporary.
The brand also incorporates surplus and deadstock fabrics, transforming existing materials into custom-made pieces. The result is a collection where sustainability isn’t treated as a trend, but as part of the design process itself.
Among the pieces attracting attention are AKI’s distinctive bow ties, designed to bring Japanese textiles into unexpected settings—from red carpets to parties around the world. They capture the spirit of the brand particularly well: traditional craftsmanship, reimagined with a modern point of view and made to stand out.
Kazue Mizushima sees that combination as a natural match for Los Angeles. After years working as a stylist in Tokyo, she is now based in LA, where her work spans celebrity styling, editorials, brand campaigns, and creative direction. For her, AKI’s craftsmanship, individuality, and fashion-as-art philosophy reflect a vision of Japan that can speak directly to LA’s creative community.
WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – AUGUST 28: Guests attend the opening of the “Smiley: Lost In My Own Universe” exhibition at The London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills on August 28, 2026 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Michael Tullberg/Getty Images)
The timing of the launch also brought another creative layer to the experience. The opening of the BaileyMick gallery coincided with the SMILEY exhibition, creating an environment where fashion and art could naturally intersect.
Now, LA has the opportunity to experience AKI firsthand. AKI is available for purchase at BaileyWick inside The London West Hollywood, offering a new way to discover Japanese design through one-of-a-kind textiles, thoughtful craftsmanship, and fashion created with the individual at its center.
In a world of endless production and constant newness, AKI offers a different perspective: fashion can be slower, more personal, and perhaps even a little more like art.
