Behind the Brand: Vik Tailor of MKI MIYUKI ZOKU

Since its launch, MKI's multi-faceted approach to streetwear production and design has landed the brand at the forefront of the industry. Born in 2010, MKI MIYUKI ZOKU was created with the intention to shake up the streetwear scene of its home city of Leeds. Some years on, the brand has far exceeded the boundaries of the north of England and instead found itself a global audience.

With a forward-thinking approach to both creation and finish, MKI exists as a breath of fresh air in a market inundated with competition, setting itself apart with a modest price point matched only by exceptional quality. Off the back of releasing "the heaviest jersey collection on the market," we caught up with Owner and Creative Director of the brand, Vik Tailor, to talk about everything from origins to creative direction and brand maturity.

My family has always been firmly routed in the design field, with careers ranging from product design and engineering to tailoring. Growing up in this environment made it a fairly natural career choice to move into menswear. When I’d started working myself I’d always worked in retail, so constantly being immersed in the industry definitely helps feed the passion for menswear as a whole.

The Miyuki Zoku were a Japanese fashion tribe in the 60’s. They took the American Ivy League style over to Japan for the first time. They were a great source of inspiration for me and the brand in the beginning as they made themselves known for going against the grain, in a similar way to us carving our way into the industry. The concept has evolved with us and the core ideas of independence and individuality reflect into our brand identity.

Our mission was always, and still is to provide accessible contemporary streetwear. Accessible in both affordability and wearability. When we started back 10 years ago there was definitely a gap in the market for this low to mid-range price point whilst still providing quality product. This ethos is the foundation of our company and is still something I still fiercely believe in.

The inner workings of our creative process all start in house. The conception of each collection starts with the needs and wants of our team. Mood boards and initial drawings are all developed in our design studio and this further develops into samples. Once approval is done we move onto sampling at one of our various factories. We use specific factories for specific products. It helps to get the very best out of the designs and truly bring them to life.

I think we’ve had a more accelerated growth in the past few years but the brand ethics still remain. In terms of styling; as with anything; we just evolve. Heavier logos still play a part on our jersey garments, whereas our more technical outerwear and sartorial pieces are more suited to subtle branding. MKI naturally matures as our designs, team and customers do.

The heavyweight jersey collection is something the team and I are exceptionally proud of. As some of our OG customers will know, we previously had a ‘Made in USA’ programme consisting of 12 oz crews, hoods and joggers. The response and demand were incredible, but we knew we could push it further. We wanted to know how heavy we could take a cotton garment without turning it into something as stiff as denim. We’d tested 400gsm, 500gsm, and landed on 650gsm as the perfect weight in loopback terry cotton.

The whole process took over 2 years to develop, but the hard work has paid off, with the undeniable reaction from our customers. It has resulted in what is now a core collection for MKI. We intend to continually develop the range releasing new colourways and silhouettes so stay posted.

As we draw closer to high summer, we are soon to release our 2 main capsule collections for S/S 22, alongside further development of new printed jersey and accessory lines. Everything else is unfortunately tightly under wraps.

Catch the latest from MKI here on the brand's instagram.