NO NAME: From Mexican “StreetCouture” to Rakuten Fashion Week

By: Karl Manrique

Jonathan Morales is a Mexican designer who creates through the brand NO NAME from his essence and his passions. Behind this brand, he reflects the visual noise of urban culture through color, although adorned with graphics and sigils of everything he is passionate about: from pop culture icons, music, and Japanese anime.

Jonathan plays not only with graphic elements, materials, and printing, but also with ultra-creative patternmaking that has caught the attention of celebrities such as Lady Gaga and BlackPink.

This will be the first time Jonathan takes NO NAME to Rakuten Fashion Week Tokyo, a stage that seems perfectly created for him and his creations, after 10 years of doing what he himself calls “Street Couture.” In this exclusive interview for Fashion Thinking, he tells us what lies behind the success of his brand and the collection he will present in Japan as part of the Global Fashion Collective:

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Jonathan, you have mentioned in interviews that you are not interested in designing only for celebrities, but also for real people. With NO NAME being a niche brand with avant-garde design, how have you managed to connect with the common consumer and find your market?

Our streetwear is made to be worn. We call our pieces “street couture” because I firmly believe that the consumer wants proposals that allow them to express their individuality, and with NO NAME we cover that niche. We move away from fast fashion to be more conscious and produce limited quantities of our products, reducing waste and surplus.

NO NAME’s collections do not follow genders or seasons, contrasting with the avalanche of current micro-trends. How does the brand navigate this context and maintain its authenticity?

We seek to be faithful to the codes of the house and the DNA of the brand. Thanks to having clients all over the world, our collections allow us to have garments for all seasons: you can find a ski jacket along with a crop top in the same sample.

What is it that you are passionate about Japan? What do you feel connects you with its culture, and how has it inspired your collections up to the point of presenting your work in this country?

**We thank Jonathan Morales for his answers and Global Fashion Collective for making this conversation possible.