First up on the Paris Fashion Week schedule this morning was a pitstop at Junya Watanabe, where the Japanese designer debuted what he’d been working on for the last six months. The kind of label that gets obscure streetwear-loving hypebeasts riled up at the best of times, this season will surely send them into a tailspin, given Watanabe has linked up with Palace on what appears to be a collaboration for AW23.
Though details for now are sparse, and it was a bit of a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, the London skate brand’s Tri-Ferg logo was unmistakable, plastered across the front of a functional, utilitarian parka. Of course, it’s not the first time Watanabe has linked up with a brand like Palace. In 2021, he joined forces with Supreme on a capsule line that was an immediate sellout, with pieces now going for absolutely crazy money on resale sites like Grailed.
The show itself took place in a stark white gallery space, with a blue sky backdrop sitting in stark contrast to Watanabe’s bulky, multi-pocketed bombers, signature backpacks, and slim-fit tailoring. Accents came via cable ties wrapped around arms and ankle cuffs, as well as hybrid hats that fused wide-brimmed styles and caps with bicycle helmets. Rounding things off was a further collab with The North Face, Levi’s, and Carhartt, meaning, as the Palace boys often put it, it’s time to start saving pea.