Street elite

If you know anything about streetwear culture you will know the name Hiroshi Fujiwara. The Japanese musician, producer and fashion designer (61) is the legend that brought hip-hop to a generation in Japan, spread the word about youth movements through his Takarajima magazine column Last Orgy, and became a mentor to both Nigo (Tomoaki Nagao), founder of A Bathing Ape (BAPE) and Jun Takahashi of Undercover. Nigo, which means “number two” in Japanese, got his nickname as Fujiwara's assistant – the close resemblance between the two meant the moniker stuck. Fujiwara has rightly been granted his own mantle, the “godfather of Japanese streetwear” – he’s a cultural crossover pioneer, and the first Japanese member of the international Stussy tribe (IST): the global collective of artists, musicians, DJs, and cultural figures, handpicked by Shawn Stüssy in the late '80s and '90s to embody the Stüssy brand's streetwear ethos.

Something of a polymath, Fujiwara is now the force behind the creative studio and design agency Fragment Design – and Nike’s most important collaborator. The November drop of the 2025 Travis Scott x Fragment x Air Jordan 1 Low OG, a three-way collaboration, just broke records for the most legitimate raffle entries ever at 4.4 million. He is prolific, irrepressible, and as the buzz around his reverse swoosh sneakers reached hysteria, Fragment dropped another line last month: a snowboarding capsule collection for Burton. The sport is another Fujiwara fixation: he’s been involved in the lifestyle for nearly 30 years and regularly chases powder in Japan, designing gear for his own use and enjoyment which, as one might expect, transitions to streetwear.

This latest capsule is a complete limited-edition set of both hardwear and outerwear: snowboards, bindings, jackets, bib pants, and Anon goggles and helmets, which are designed in technical materials such as Gore-Tex to withstand challenging conditions. Fujiwara is a long-time collaborator with Burton and has, over the years, conceived a number of collections for the snowboarding and outdoor products manufacturer, which also owns Anon Optics, the helmets and goggles innovator. His coveted drops embody his minimal streetwear aesthetic in monochromatic palettes (representative of Japan’s urban and alpine contrast) and sport subtle yet distinctive Fragment monograms: a repeating graphic of Fragment's iconic double-lightning bolt logo. It’s a symbol that is emblematic of Fujiwara’s dynamism and his ability to fuse global subcultures, bringing together music, fashion and design through collaboration.

The cool collaborator

A Hiroshi Fujiwara timeline:

• 1982: Hiroshi Fujiwara meets Malcolm McLaren in London while visiting Vivienne Westwood’s World's End boutique on the King's Road (Westwood was then McLaren’s partner), drawn by his love for punk fashion. They become friends and McLaren introduces him to hip-hop and the New York scene. Fujiwara returns to Japan and becomes one of the country's first hip-hop DJs.
• 1985 Fujiwara forms the hip-hop duo Tiny Panx with Kan Takagi, referencing the nickname, “tiny punks” given to them by McLaren. They swap the punk anarchy symbol for the “A” in the name.
• 1987 Fujiwara begins writing his influential column, Last Orgy, for the Japanese street culture magazine Takarajima, which serves as a bridge, introducing Western trends in punk, hip-hop, fashion and sneakers to Japanese youth, before the internet. Nigo is the column’s biggest fan. 
• 1988 Fujiwara and Takagi co-found Japan's first hip-hop record label, Major Force. 
• 1990 Fujiwara creates his own apparel brand Goodenough. It’s a success, adopting the scarcity tactic of super limited lines.
• 1993 Fujiwara helps Nigo and Jun Takahashi open the influential Harajuku shop Nowhere in the Ura-Harajuku district of Tokyo, which becomes a hub for the streetwear scene.
• 2002 Fujiwara forms the legendary Nike design trio HTM (an acronym of Hiroshi, Tinker, Mark) with Nike’s Tinker Hatfield and Mark Parker. The collaborative project serves as Nike's innovation lab to experiment with new technologies and reinterpret classic silhouettes, starting with a premium Air Force 1 in premium leather with contrast stitching.
• 2003 He launches Fragment Design, a creative consultancy and design agency serving as a platform for collaboration.
• 2010 Fragment Design x Nike Dunk High "City Pack" is released. The pack includes three colourways inspired by New York, London and Beijing.
• 2013 The Fragment Design x Nike Air Force 1 collaboration is released. It includes both Air Force 1 and Lunar Force 1 models.
• 2014 The Fragment Design x Air Jordan 1 High OG collaboration in the Black, White and Royal Blue colourway is dropped. It becomes a collector’s design fetching over $2,000 on the secondary market.
• 2017 Fujiwara teams up with former Men's Artistic Director Kim Jones for Louis Vuitton x Fragment – a streetwear-infused collection of menswear, featuring monochromatic looks, varsity jackets, graphic tees, Monogram Eclipse bags, leather goods, footwear, accessories, and special items such as a monogrammed record player and teddy bears.
• 2018 The TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 by Fragment Hiroshi Fujiwara watch is released, a 1960s-inspired limited edition that quickly sells out. That same year, he collaborates with Moncler for the first time, as part of the Moncler Genius project.
• 2019 The Fragment x Bvlgari bag collection, featuring lightning bolts and signature logos on bags such as the Serpenti is launched, with releases at Japanese department stores, and online. A year later, this is followed by the Fall/Winter 2020 collection, in addition to the limited-edition release in Japan of the Fragment x Bulgari "Bulgari Bulgari" watch. A second watch collection for the global market follows a year later. 
• 2021 The Fragment Design x Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 High drops, becoming a legendary, nearly unobtainable grail, coveted for its premium materials, iconic colourway (Military Blue/Sail/Black), and blend of Fragment's clean design with Travis Scott's reverse swoosh. 
• 2024 Maserati unveils the supercar, Fuoriserie by Hiroshi Fujiwara, a limited-edition, bespoke Maserati MC20 Cielo
• 2025 The Fragment x Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Low OG (2025 edition with Military Blue accents) drops, breaking the record for most raffle entries ever, confirmed at 4.4 million. The new Burton x Fragment snowboarding capsule collection is launched.