An image of two people looking into an illuminated BEAMS store at night. The focal point is an orange car displayed in the storefront window, with the merchandised BEAMS store visible behind it.

GOING BACK TO AUTHENTIC GOODS AND THE START OF OVERSEAS EXPANSION

Although Japanese fashion continued to be dominated by street style in the first years of the new century, Beams wanted to try something against trends. The label Beams Plus launched in 1999 with the concept of “authentic menswear that can be worn forever,” putting a contemporary spin on American menswear from its golden age of the mid-1940s to the mid- 1960s. The Beams Plus designers obsessed over sturdy fabrics and high-quality construction. The brand took off with both the company’s regular customers as well as those who worked in the fashion industry at large.

        

In the mid-2000s, Beams fell for the originality and presentation style of Stella Ishii’s New York showroom The News, which culminated in a strong working relationship. On the men’s side, trends bifurcated into two competing looks: classic Americana versus menswear with delicate, feminine details, as represented by Chitose Abe’s sacai. As traditional styles took over the market, Beams Plus started to be sold overseas for the first time through Italy’s celebrated purveyor of heritage brands, WP Group.

An image of a BEAMS store taken at night, featuring a display of palm trees and foliage leading into the store.

Japan has been seen as the most advanced fashion market in Asia since the 1980s, so when neighboring countries started to experience rapid economic growth, those consumers looked to the sharp editorial eye of Beams for the latest fashion and lifestyles. With high demand from abroad, Beams opened shops outside Japan for the first time. May 2005 saw the launch of the company’s first overseas store in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, with Beams opening more shops in Hong Kong throughout the year. So began an Asian expansion strategy that now includes locations in Beijing, Taipei, and Bangkok. On the domestic front, Beams expanded its cultural collaborations, including the creation of official staff uniforms and merchandise for the globally renowned music festival Fuji Rock Festival.

A collage of men's loafers designed by BEAMS, with red, burgundy, black, and tan loafers piled together.
An image of a BEAMS store taken at night, looking inside through a display that resembles an outdoor ambiance. A wooden picket fence and grass are visible, along with the door leading to the interior. Inside, BEAMS merchandise is displayed for sale.
Two pairs of Levi's jeans folded in half, featuring paint splatters, in collaboration with the BEAMS brand.

In the 2000s, Beams launched an e-commerce site and greatly expanded its brick-and-mortar locations. Employees who had recently become mothers proposed launching a children’s clothing business, culminating in the shop Kodomo Beams. Meanwhile, Beams House opened as a large-scale complex for upscale men’s and women’s dress clothes. And a decade of Beams buyers’ visits to semiannual menswear Florence tradeshow Pitti Uomo allowed the company to introduce the world’s latest trends into the Japanese fashion market.

At the end of the decade, the opening of a small shop, Vermeerist Beams, helped the brand return to its roots. Vermeerist Beams was based on the innovative idea that store buyers would work as the store staff so they could directly communicate with customers about the products. Despite its small scale, Vermeerist Beams received high praise from fashion elites and helped many further deepen their love for fashion. The store came just as the explosion of fashion magazines in Japan created a new generation of “star buyers” and “charismatic PR staff” who became the faces of the fashion industry.

An image of a BEAMS store taken at night, with clothing hanging inside visible through the glass window.