He worked patiently behind the scenes and waited for his moment. At the same time, he was learning from Kenjiro Moriya, the owner of a Tokyo vintage clothing shop with a cult-like following and a long list of Japanese A-listers for clients. As one of their first employees, he helped the American brand plant its feet in Tokyo. In the early ‘70s, he accepted a position with Levi’s Japan. A Young Masao Oishi visiting Los Angeles in ’73 – Picture from Son of a StagĪs a young man, Masao Oishi developed a keen interest in the manufacturing side of denim. His pivotal role in the deal between Canton Mills and Maruo Clothing cemented his place in Japanese denim lore. Maruo Clothing Factory – Picture from Blue Owl WorkshopĪs an importer, Masao’s father had been satisfying Japan’s insatiable appetite for America’s unwanted or discarded denim since the ‘50s. Sitting in the corner office at Oishi Trading was Masao Oishi’s father. When Maruo Clothing, which would later become Big John, and Georgia’s Canton Mills cooperated to produce the first pair of true-blue made-in-Japan denim in 1965, the deal was brokered by Oishi Trading. The Oishi name has deep roots in Japanese denim history. Redcast couldn’t have picked a better collaborator or a name with more heritage clout than Masao Oishi. On the surface, the 622HOX are slick and modern, but they’ve got rugged workwear baked into their DNA. The fabric’s texture pulls the eyes closer and closer, and the finishing details are subtly brilliant.

The 622HOX have all the trademarks of pairs that come out of the Oni workshop. In my opinion, it’s a one-swing knockout. Once again, they’ve stepped off the beaten path with this sulfur-dyed heavy oxford cloth. To mark their third anniversary, they’re coming out swinging with both hands with a limited collaboration with Oni Denim. They’re moving out of their corner and planting their feet in the centre of the ring. Since their second anniversary last year, they’ve expanded their roster considerably to include some of the biggest Japanese brands like Samurai and Pure Blue Japan. They’ve become a go-to source for popular artisanal denim brands like Oni, Tanuki, Tender, and Studio D’Artisan. It’s now been three years since Redcast Heritage first stepped into the ring, and they’ve got an impressive winning streak behind them. They swaggered like a heavyweight, confident that they had the goods to back up this posture. Right from the start, they knew what they were about.

They were testing the market with well-placed jabs, and they seemed to be constantly moving forward, never on the back foot. They stocked hard-to-find Japanese brands like Strike Gold, Trophy, and UES, and they were wading into the collaboration pool with an eye-popping pair from Spain’s premier denim atelier, Companion Denim.

When they first popped up on my radar, Redcast Heritage were new to the scene, but they had the air of a hungry and determined challenger. I’ve always had a fondness for underdogs and upstarts-particularly those who are determined to go their own way. Redcast Heritage x Oni Denim 622HOX Review These are our honest impressions of that pair. Disclaimer: Redcast Heritage were confident enough in the 622HOX that they were willing to send us a pair to review.

Oni x tanuki fade