Inside Beams Plus: From Harajuku to the Page

A store visit that deepened my love for Japanese menswear — and Shigeru Kaneko’s Outdoor Exhibition

There were a couple of reasons I wanted to visit Beams Plus in Japan. Sure, you can find the label in the UK fairly easily — but it’s never the full collection, and you don’t quite get the full picture of what the brand’s about. The curation, the story, the message. What you get instead is the direction of whichever store happens to stock it. And while I’m grateful that those stores do carry Beams Plus, I wanted the full experience — their own world, on their own turf.

One person who sits right at the centre of Beams Plus and what it stands for is their Chief Buyer, Shigeru Kaneko.

He’s recently released a book documenting his long-standing obsession with outdoor wear — mountain parkas, down jackets, cagoules and more — in a beautifully curated volume titled Outdoor Expedition, which I picked up while visiting the Harajuku store.

Before I get into why that book has completely absorbed me, I want to share a bit about visiting the store itself.

Tokyo’s districts all have their own identity — not just in atmosphere, but in how people dress. In Koenji you’ll see beaten-up Levi’s and vintage Vans. Daikanyama leans crisp and curated. In Ginza, it’s tailoring and polish. And in Harajuku, that balance of chaos and sharpness — retro cafés next to towering department stores — makes it the perfect home for Beams Plus.

For me, the store represents what both Ivy and Japan mean personally: a celebration of style and heritage, without being stuck in any one mode. Beams Plus feels current, relevant — not trapped in nostalgia — and that’s something worth celebrating.

The shop is full of madras, a fantastic collaboration with Sperry, and plenty more to take in. I picked up a short-sleeve chain stitch chambray shirt — a fine example of Japanese craftsmanship, and a staple I know I’ll return to again and again.

But what really makes the store special is the staff. They don’t just represent the brand — they live it. You can tell they’re genuine fans of Beams Plus, not just employees. And, of course, they’re dressed impeccably.

One thing I noticed throughout Japan was how open and generous people are — happy to chat, generous with their time, and genuinely interested in connecting.

Kitano, who works at the store, was all of that: sharply dressed, welcoming, and more than happy to share in our shared passion for the style.

Kitano_takaya

While chatting to Kitano, I noticed Shigeru Kaneko’s book — Outdoor Expedition — sitting on the counter. Naturally, we ended up talking about Kaneko’s fantastic work as Chief Buyer for Beams Plus, and of course, the new book itself.

Outdoor Expedition is the ninth volume in the I Am Beams series — a project that gives Beams staff the space to dive into their own creative worlds. This edition focuses on Shigeru Kaneko, whose role as Chief Buyer has helped shape the identity of Beams Plus. The book captures his lifelong fascination with outdoor clothing, especially the kind of rare, vintage pieces that inform so much of his buying philosophy.

Bilingual in English and Japanese, the book reads like a deep, personal archive. It includes thoughtful commentary from Kaneko himself, highlights from the Outdoor Recreation Archive at Utah State University — one of the most respected collections of its kind — and interviews with three experts in the field of classic outdoor design. It’s more than just a collection of gear; it’s a window into the influences behind one of Japan’s most respected menswear minds.

I ended up reading the whole book cover to cover on the flight home — it was hard not to. The level of enthusiasm, passion, and detail pulls you in right from the start. It’s packed with garments I already knew, pieces I’d never even heard of, and plenty of answers to questions I’d always had — like why certain details show up where they do.

For a menswear obsessive like me, this book was pretty much my ideal reading material. I was fully in my element.

What I also loved was how the book offers a window into how Beams develops its pieces. They’re not simply recreating the past — they’re studying the best of it and using that knowledge to push things forward. It’s about taking inspiration and making it unmistakably their own. That’s what I admire about Beams: their ability to respect heritage while still evolving it.

It’s also a good reminder that no matter where we sit in the world of menswear — whether we’re quiet observers or part of the industry itself — at the core, we’re all just fans. And that shared passion is what really brings it all together.

For me, Beams Plus is one of the most inspiring brands out there today — not just because of what they offer, but because it feels genuinely community-driven. It’s the people behind the brand who make it what it is: what they wear, how they wear it, and the way they share their passion so naturally. That sense of connection is what makes Beams Plus truly stand out.

If you’re heading to Japan any time soon, do yourself a favour and visit one of the Beams Plus stores. You’ll instantly get what I mean. It’s one thing to see the label on rails here in the UK — and I’m always glad when I do — but it’s another to experience the full collection in its own space, with its own story. It all just makes sense.

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A big thank you to everyone who’s been following along with my journey through Japan — it’s been an incredible trip, and one I’ll remember for the rest of my life. If you haven’t already, I’ve shared a few store guide reels over on Instagram tomhoystyle, so feel free to check those out.

I’ve also got something special in the works covering the whole trip — so keep an eye out, more to come very soon.