Toshikiyo Hirata, founder of the iconic Japanese fashion brand Kapital, has died.
The news of Hirata’s passing was shared by Denim Dudes via Instagram on Saturday. Photographer Eric Kvatek, who had worked with the brand for several years, confirmed the news known to the blog.
“Toshikiyo Hirata, founder of legendary Japanese brand @kapitalglobal has sadly passed away. Shout out to our buddy @eric_kvatek for sharing this sad news with the denim community,” wrote Denim Dudes on IG.
“Toshikiyo’s son Kiro has taken the Kapital brand to amazing levels, accompanied by Eric’s unique photography work over recent years and we have no doubt that Toshikiyo-San’s legacy will live on for many years to come. Our condolences go out to all the Kapital family 💔,” they added.
Toshikiyo, born in Okayama, Japan, was introduced to American denim and vintage clothing while working in the United States as a karate instructor in the 1980s, according to GQ. He opened a denim factory, Capital Ltd., in his wife’s hometown of Kojima, Japan shortly after returning to his home country.
The publication says that Kiro originally didn’t see himself joining the family business until he went to U.S. to study art. As fate would have it, Kiro found a passion for vintage clothes and denim. After a brief stint working for 45R, another high-end Japanese denim brand with a traditional approach, Kiro left in 2002 to work with his father.
Kapital as we know it was born out of Kiro’s art-focused sensibilities and his father’s eye for traditional craftsmanship.
“Looking back at the history of jeans, the oldest jeans from Levi's are about 100 years old,” Kiro told GQ in 2019. “Jeans originated in the USA, and my father perfectly mastered the reproduction. So I thought it was my turn to create something new and not just repeat what has already been done. I wanted to create something for the next 100 years into the future.”
