Shopper’s Diary: Idée in Tokyo

Idée opened its first shop in the early eighties in the fashionable Tokyo district of Aoyama and burgeoned into the country’s leading contemporary furniture design store chain (Muji bought the company in 2006). Owner Teruo Kurosaki, with his mission of making good, simple design accessible to all, is often compared to his British counterpart, Terence Conran. Early on, Idée began designing and manufacturing their own products, often commissioning foreign designers such as Philippe Starck in the eighties and Marc Newson, among others. Go to Idée to find a store location in Japan.

N.B. Taku and Keiko Shinomoto of Tortoise in LA are both Idée alum.