After a Few Appetizers, NIGO’s FW22 KENZO Collection Is the Main Course

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We’ve already developed a taste for NIGO‘s KENZO and the designer is finally serving up the main course with the first drop of his Fall/Winter 2022 KENZO collection, his first proper seasonal affair with the house.

NIGO already issued a couple limited edition KENZO collections over the past few months, themed after house staples like the boke flower, washed denim, KENZO’s iconic tiger, and the poppy flower, a favorite of founder Kenzo Takada.

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Takada has been a core inspiration for NIGO, in that NIGO’s blended his own streetwear codes with Takada’s colorful capital-F Fashion.

The resulting KENZO garments are wholly NIGO, to be sure, but steeped in Takada’s motifs. The elements that informed the above drops were borrowed from Takada’s oeuvre, for instance, but so is NIGO’s emphasis on real clothing, the kinda stuff that can be effortlessly tossed on for any occasion.

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Available now on KENZO’s website, this first Fall/Winter 2022 drop — to be followed by two more over the course of several months — comprises a collection of highly approachable statement pieces abetted by leather goods, accessories, and staple basics.

That means quintessentially KENZO pieces, like floral-rich shirts and gauzey wool scarves, joined by the sort of things that you expect from a contemporary luxury label, like phone cases and clutch bags.

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NIGO’s KENZO is, by design, not going to titillate anyone who isn’t already plugged into the Human Made founder’s distinctively laidback approach to fashion.

These are garments meant to be worn, and the prices reflect that. The most expensive piece is a flower-printed work boot that retails for $1,065, followed by a $925 “workwear jacket” and poppy-printed trucker, with dungarees, “windcheater” anoraks, blazers, and cardigans rounding out the top-tier prices.

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But the “affordable” items are in equally ample supply by way of $125 iPhone cases, $155 KENZO caps, and $170 boke flower T-shirts. Certainly no bargains here but as far as luxury labels go, this is all well within aspirational status.

Of all the LVMH-owned houses, NIGO’s post-streetwear approach feels the most aligned with what kids on the street crave (and can afford).

The question, of course, is whether the world is ready for NIGO’s rejuvenated, youthful KENZO.