Somete was featured on "J-WAVE TOKYO MORNING RADIO"! (Almost the entire transcript available)
Somete was featured as a popular service on J-WAVE TOKYO MORNING RADIO , hosted by actor and talent Tetsuya Bessho!
On the program's official X (formerly Twitter) account, you can see Bessho-san wearing a shirt that was dyed with indigo mud by somete , so be sure to check it out.
*For those who were unable to listen to the radio, we have posted a nearly complete transcript of the interview below!
A clothing dyeing and upcycling platform that respects diversity and delivers Japanese culture to the world
Tetsuya Bessho (hereinafter referred to as Bessho) : Tetsuya Bessho is the navigator J-WAVE TOKYO MORNING RADIO. Since last weekend, the weather has suddenly become more autumn-like, and I'm sure many of you are exploring your closets to find autumn-inspired outfits.
The problem of "clothing disposal" has become a social issue
The season for changing clothes also begins in October , and according to data published on the Ministry of the Environment's website, which we previously featured on the program, the average number of pieces of clothing purchased per person per year is approximately 18 pieces of clothing .
And I'm getting rid of about 12 pieces of clothing. What do you think? Is that about the amount? And I estimate that I have about 25 pieces of clothing that I haven't worn even once a year. So, I'll organize my dresser this weekend.
This may be an obvious result, as I buy more clothes than I get rid of, but gradually my clothes start to increase in number.
The spread of convenient and affordable fast fashion has shortened the cycle of clothing consumption and increased the number of products available, but the majority of this clothing, 68% of the total, is discarded as burnable or non-burnable waste .
Recycling and reuse through flea market apps and second-hand clothing shops is becoming a growing movement, but this morning I'd like to focus on a service that upcycles clothes that are lying around your home.
The lack of successors for artisans and the problem of fashion waste: two social issues we want to address through "re-dyeing"
PlayBlue Aono Yuji (hereinafter, Aono): " somete" is, in simple terms, an upcycling platform that allows you to take clothes that are lying around your home and have them re-dyed by approximately 40 workshops across the country that we work with.
There are simple indigo dyes, but there are also some unique craftsmen who specialize in "coffee dyeing," which involves re-dyeing fabrics using discarded coffee grounds, and there is also a workshop in Shizuoka that re-dyes fabrics using tea leaves that would otherwise be discarded.
There are also workshops that re-dye items using food waste and other discarded materials. There are also traditional crafts, such as black crested kimono dyeing and indigo dyeing. I think that collaborating with such artisans is what sets us apart.
Bessho: We spoke with Yuji Aono, CEO of PlayBlue, which operates the clothing re-dyeing upcycling platform "somete." Aono, who originally ran a local media outlet, learned about the lack of successors to take over the industry while interviewing indigo dyeing artisans. He then launched this service with the desire to address two social issues: fashion waste and clothing disposal.
In fact, this time, the staff of one of our programs upcycled a white T- shirt using "somete." Well, as you can see, the white T- shirt has been beautifully transformed into a beautiful black T- shirt . This has also been posted on the program's social media , so please check it out.
So, what kind of people use the "somete" service?
The philosophy of our service is "respect for diversity"
Aono: It's been about a year and a half since we launched the service, but in the early days, it seemed like the users were people who were sensitive to environmental issues and trends. In terms of age, it seemed like the users were men and women in their 20s and early 30s .
I think there has been a slight change recently, and it seems that we are seeing an increase in customers who are fashionable, have a strong attachment to clothes, and are very particular about their clothes in a good way.
So, they want to wear this outfit for as long as possible, and it has important memories, so they want it to be this color. One of the features of our service is that it takes into account the current social trends, or diversity, and the fact that each person has their favorite colors, and accepting that and allowing them to choose their favorite color is also part of the fundamental philosophy of our service .
So, we design it in the context of having it dyed in various colors by various workshops, and that's something that resonates with people. Furthermore, I get the impression that people also sympathize with the idea that it will ultimately be good for the global environment and will lead to a reduction in clothing waste.
Bessho: The price varies depending on the dyeing technique, but the average price is around 3,000 to 10,000 yen. It's certainly not cheap, but it seems like you can find new value in your precious clothes.
It takes about a month to re-dye the clothes, but during that time you can enjoy the excitement of seeing how your precious clothes will be reborn.
The action of upcycling not only aims to reduce waste, but also seems to lead to the development of a mindset that fosters a sense of caring for things. Along with positive feedback from users of "somete," dyeing studios and artisans have also responded, saying that it is helping to raise awareness of traditional techniques and culture.
Now, this "Somete" is a socially good content, but if you look at it from a slightly different perspective, it also seems to have the potential for inbound business.
Communicating Japanese culture to foreign tourists through dyeing
AONO: We often set up booths at pop-up events. We once held a re-dyeing experience event, and a person from Europe, I believe, happened to be at a re-dyeing workshop in Shibuya, and decided they wanted to try it out.
I think this will appeal to some people, and it also ties into our future vision of approaching inbound customers, so we are thinking of various ways to do this.
What we are currently working on is to collaborate with somete to provide services to inbound tourists staying in Japan for the medium to long term.
For example, if you are staying in Japan for two weeks or a month, we could take your clothes during your stay and return them to you re-dyed. We have been thinking about various systems like this and would like to put them into practice.
We are currently working on creating a framework or system that will allow people overseas to use somete's services as a part of Japanese culture, not just in Japan.
Bessho: Yes. I see, that's a global perspective. That's great. Re-dyeing clothes is an option other than throwing them away, and traditional Japanese culture is leading to social good action. We hope that this platform for solving global issues will originate from Japan and become a Japanese style.
For more information about somete, please check out the official website. Before you even think about throwing away your old T- shirts, such as "I wore them too much this summer and they've gotten dirty," or "I wanted to wear them this fall and winter, but when I looked more closely , I noticed they had a stain," you can "reuse" them by re-dyeing them .
Why not try making that an option?
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J-WAVE TOKYO MORNING RADIO | J-WAVE | 2023/09/26/Tue 06:00-09:00
