In pictures: Dolly heads to Tokyo for a street style-inspired shoot

When it comes to street style, Japan is a cut above the rest. Legendary magazines like FRUiTS, Street and Tune documented the scene in the 90s and 2000s, unearthing the best fashion on offer from coast to coast. It’s style bibles like these that have inspired the latest shoot from designer Molly Dilkes and her brand Dolly.

“For sure,” says Dilkes, when asked about her shoot’s similarity to those kinds of magazines. “Subconsciously, we wanted to take the opportunity of leaning into Japan being such a known place for incredible street style.” For the shoot, Dilkes enlisted two Tokyo natives, Juhée and Dome, who both work together in a designer clothing shop called The Four Eyed. “We were definitely really inspired by the girls Juhée and Dome,” says Dilkes. “They both have amazing style. Dome is super swag vibes and Juhée layers lots of prints together. All of this combined, we felt like we could do the most maxed out versions of a Dolly outfit.”

For those wondering, a Dolly outfit is a combination of baggy board shorts, logoed hoodies, star-strewn polos and graphic tees that make up the offering from the London brand. Launched at the beginning of 2022, Dilkes, a self-taught graphic designer, had recently gone freelance and was looking for an outlet to channel her creativity. “I was making lots of prints and used them to make shirts, bags and skirts,” she says. “I think the real push to officially start the brand was being picked up by Dover Street Market, which helped me think about creating small collections to have in the store.”

With Dilkes in charge of everything from design to creative direction to managing production with factories, Dolly is a real labour of love – and the designer wanted to celebrate that with a Japanese shoot. “I wanted to do a shoot to build a bit more brand presence in Japan,” she says, “and I also feel the brand is quite well received there in terms of customers we have.”

For the shoot, Dilkes sought the help of photographer Phoebe Plimmer and stylist Zoey Radford Scott, who she has a close working relationship with. “We have lots of fun hanging out and understand each other’s visual identities,” says the designer. Shooting in the Hatagaya suburbs of Tokyo, Juhée and Dome are lensed in Dolly’s outsized wares, but accessorised with Y2K-era signifiers like diamanté G-Shocks, New Era fitted caps and Bathing Ape Bape Stas, to really give it that FRUiTS-coded energy. “I feel like the brand sits in between a few things,” says Dilkes, knowingly. “It can be quite masculine but also hot and feminine. Beach and city. Nature and party girl.” And now, Dolly is taking over the suburbs of Tokyo, one shoot at a time.

Scroll through the gallery at the top of the page to see the entire shoot