Warehouse & Co. is a Japanese heritage denim and vintage workwear brand founded in Osaka in 1995 by twin brothers Kenichi and Koji Shiotani — the youngest member of the Osaka 5. Operating under the motto “The faithful reproduction of authentic vintage garments,” Warehouse is regarded by denim collectors as one of the most technically exact and archaeologically rigorous reproduction brands in the world. The Shiotani brothers approach vintage American clothing with the methods of historians: physically pulling apart vintage denim banners from the 1930s to analyse thread composition, yarn weight, and weave structure before attempting to recreate them on period-accurate machinery.
Key Facts
- Founded: 1995
- Founders: Kenichi and Koji Shiotani (twin brothers)
- Headquarters: Osaka, Japan
- Industry: Heritage Denim Reproduction, American Vintage Workwear
History
Both Kenichi and Koji Shiotani had previously worked at Evisu before departing over philosophical differences and founding Warehouse & Co. Their Lot. 1001xx model — a loose-straight jean modelled on Levi’s 501XX jeans from the 1940s and 1950s, with iron buttons, copper rivets, red rayon pocket tab, curved arcuates, and a goatskin leather waist patch — launched the brand and remains its calling card today. Early Warehouse jeans are now collector’s items in the secondary market.
Warehouse uses 1950s Toyoda G3 shuttle looms to weave its “banner denim” — a proprietary fabric reverse-engineered from a vintage Levi’s denim banner from the 1930s, produced from a blend of Tennessee, Texas, and Arizona cotton at 13.4oz. The brand also produces loopwheeled sportswear, flannel shirts, WWII-era denim jackets, and accessories — all reproduced from specific vintage American originals. Warehouse has recently acquired a stake in Denime, another Osaka 5 brand, releasing garments under the combined “Denime by Warehouse & Co.” label.
Aesthetic
Warehouse’s aesthetic is the purest expression of the Japanese vintage Americana philosophy: not nostalgia, but resurrection. The brothers have stated they “never add any new designs without gathering the actual vintage fabrics” first. The result is clothing that feels genuinely old — not fashionably distressed but authentically aged in character and construction. Stocked by Blue in Green, Clutch Cafe, Franklin & Poe, and specialist heritage retailers globally.
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