Doublet SS26

Food. We all love it. But Doublet might just love it the most. At Paris Fashion Week, Masayuki Ino transformed a lush natural garden into a runway celebration of life’s simplest, yet most profound pleasure. Food. Bananas, eggs, ketchup, and mustard became pret a porter, wrapped in Doublet’s signature playfulness. It was witty, eccentric and brimming with joy, yet grounded in a deeper resonance that stretched beyond the aesthetics of fashion.

The show opened not just with clothing, but with a philosophy: "Itadakimasu." In Japan this is more than a pre-meal phrase, it is a gesture of gratitude to nature, to those who farm and fish and to the cycles that sustain human life. That spirit of respect and humility lingered in every seam of this collection.

Ino’s design language often blurs the boundaries between humor and sincerity, but this season his whimsy was stitched together with materials that told their own powerful stories. Fish leather harvested from Kochi fishing ports, game leather and even delicate textiles woven from discarded eggshell membranes gave tangible weight to the concept of circularity. Each piece echoed encounters with innovators. From community driven projects such as Sky High Farm, whose mission is to nurture society through food to those repurposing discarded fishing nets from golden eye snapper fisheries. This wasn’t just a show about fashion, it was about collaboration, gratitude and building new pathways for sustainability in luxury.

The questions Ino posed through this collection felt poignant: “What makes a good material?” and “What is the true meaning of luxury?” Luxury, here, was not about wasteful excess. It was about care, intention and interconnectedness. Fashion that acknowledges both its cultural impact and environmental responsibility.

What I love most about Doublet is how Ino never allows solemnity to eclipse joy. Even when addressing urgent issues like sustainability he prefers to wink not scold. Bananas became entire looks, ketchup and mustard bottles became coveted accessories and fish became stylish bags. Yet beneath the joke was an invitation to reflect, to rethink consumption and to cultivate awareness with a smile rather than a sigh.

The SS26 collection, in all its strangeness, reminded me that clothing, just like food, is something to savor, to enjoy and to treat with respect. It also reminded me why I always look forward to Doublet; because somehow, Ino makes the act of rethinking, not intimidating, deliciously fun. As I left the garden, I realized what this show was truly about. It wasn’t simply food as inspiration. It was nourishment, for the planet, for community and for imagination. And to that I can only say, Itadakimasu!

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