Yusaku Maezawa created Zozotown, an online fashion mall in Japan that helped him become a billionaire. He owns 38 percent of Start Today, which is the parent firm of Zozotown. But what exactly is Zozotown and does it have a U.S. version?
Zozotown is now Japan’s largest online fashion retail website, after opening in 2004. It’s a digital marketplace for Japanese brands. And it keeps growing. Maezawa has recently introduced offshoots to Zozotown, called ZOZO (a custom-fit clothing brand) and ZOZOSUIT (an at-home measurement system.) And yes, Zozotown does have a U.S. version, but it’s much more simplistic than the one in Japan.
Zozotown’s offshoots are in more than 72 countries and territories. Years ago, Zozotown attempted to expand into China, but that foray only lasted a year. However, ZOZO is different.
Zozosuits are polka dot bodysuits. These skintight suits allow easy and accurate measuring at home. Customers can photograph themselves wearing the Zozosuit and then upload their body measurements to make sure all their clothes fit perfectly, Reuters reported. Essentially, the Zozosuit has patented sensor technology that captures 15,000 precise measurements and syncs through Bluetooth with the ZOZO app. Customers can then easily upload their measurements and then shop the ZOZO collection for custom-fitted clothes.
Zozo announced in July 2018 that it was going to expand its made-to-measure clothes. The clothes are now offered in 72 countries outside of Japan, and Maezawa has said that he sees overseas growth as the key to the clothing company’s success, Reuters reported.
And yes, these custom-fitted suits are available in the USA too. In November 2017, the company launched the Zozosuit in the U.S. You can order a suit at zozosuit.com.
Start Today USA is the American subsidiary of Start Today, which owns Zozotown and the Zozo brand. The Zozo USA website can be found at ZOZO.com/us/en. Click on Zozosuit to sign up for a free Zozosuit. Or click on Zozo Clothing to buy clothes from the ZOZO collection, including t-shirts and jeans. According to Racked, this is the Zozotown USA website. They plan to start with the basics and expand products from there.
However, if you really want to, you can shop on Zozotown’s main website from the U.S. Here’s a page that shows a Made in the USA jacket offered for sale on Zozotown. It’s not quite clear what on Zozotown actually ships to the U.S., and you’ll be better off navigating the site if you can speak Japanese. Some companies advertise acting as a proxy to help you buy from sites like Zozotown in Japan. That all sounds a bit confusing, but you might want to look at Zozotown’s site anyway, just to see what people are talking about.