Letter from Japan: “Tokyo is preparing to host the Olympics this summer—we want to rid ourselves of coronavirus to make this historic event a reality”

Vogue Japan decided, on February 14, to stop all editors from attending Fashion Week which was due to start that day in London, followed by shows in Milan and Paris; one of our editors had already attended New York Fashion Week. The amount of coronavirus cases in Japan was increasing (including the number of passengers on the Diamond Princess cruise ship that was anchored in Yokohama Bay). Many of the large European brands had also started to cancel the attendance of staff from their Asian offices at the shows. I had an emergency meeting with the president of Condé Nast Japan, Jun Kitada, and it was decided that we would not attend the shows. Of the Japanese media that cover Fashion Month, we were the first to cancel. At that time, there weren’t many coronavirus cases in Europe and there were some people who thought we were being over cautious.

However, a few days later, as cases unrelated to the Diamond Princess passengers began to rise, Condé Nast Japan decided to implement a two-week working from home strategy starting on February 22. The only other time the entire company had implemented such a precaution was in March 2011 at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Meanwhile, it was reported that Giorgio Armani’s show at Milan Fashion Week proceeded without an audience and that circumstances in Italy were changing rapidly. The situation worsened faster than anyone could have predicted.

Stopping the spread of fake news

A few days after our company employees and staff started to work remotely, a government panel announced that the next two weeks would be pivotal to preventing the virus from spreading further, and they asked that everyone who could work from home to do so and to refrain from going out unless absolutely necessary. At the same time, the stock of masks at medical institutions started to run out and doctors lamented a “medical downfall” if the situation was prolonged.

The government promised to provide 100 million more masks within a week, but today it is still a miracle to find one. Some people started reselling masks at high prices on e-commerce sites and the government had to take measures to ban these transactions. Many Japanese people use masks anyway, regardless of coronavirus, especially during winter commuting. They are considered a necessity, which is why nobody would have predicted mask shortages with the virus outbreak and nobody appeared to realise that most masks on sale in Japan were actually made in China.

As the mask uneasiness worsened, the next step was toilet-paper panic. The misinformation that “imports from China have stopped so the next thing that will be gone is toilet paper” had spread rapidly on social media. As supermarket and convenience store shelves emptied, the government called the toilet-paper shortage false information, but the situation hasn’t improved. In fact, there is enough toilet paper produced in Japan, but the shortage at stores has put a strain on the distribution system, making it difficult for the situation to normalise quickly. I ordered toilet paper through a big internet shopping site I frequently use, and although it did not have a shortage, the price had multiplied several times and I was told the delivery would take over a week. Once a supply chain has been broken, restoring it is problematic.

At the moment, there is a lot of false information circulating about how to get rid of the virus, such as eating curry or drinking water at 26-27˚C. The information is being spread on social media without scientific proof and government agencies are having to rebut the stories. Many people are insisting that eating curry works because the amount of cases in India is relatively low. Being able to differentiate between truth and fake news, and being able to research properly is of the utmost importance.

Holding out for the Olympics

Springtime in Japan heralds many outdoor events. However, in accordance with the government’s directives, concerts, sports events and graduation ceremonies have been cancelled. A big sumo tournament and professional baseball matches have, for the first time, been held behind closed doors. Due to climate change, the cherry trees are blossoming earlier each year, and this year they are expected to bloom in Tokyo in the next week or so. However, all public parks have asked people to refrain from “blossom watching”, which sees groups of people picnic under a blossoming cherry tree. People have been asked to “look and pass by”.

Of course, the fashion industry is also experiencing disruption. Parties and events are being cancelled or postponed. Tokyo Fashion Week, which usually follows Paris, has been cancelled. Sales in department stores in February were down 15 per cent on last year.

It has also been announced that visitors from South Korea and China will be quarantined for two weeks and many onsen-ryokans (traditional Japanese inns) which are popular with foreign tourists are closing. It’s not hard to imagine how much money they will lose if the usual income from tourists is not there. Japan is preparing to host the Olympics this summer; we want to rid ourselves of coronavirus as soon as possible to make this historic event a reality.

A different way of working

During our remote working, Vogue Japan wrapped the magazine’s May issue. This issue always includes a special feature on the latest collections from New York, London and Milan, but due to our editors not being able to travel we reduced the number of pages and changed the structure of the magazine. We watched the shows that were available on live streams and checked Instagram pages and websites for information on the collections. Several years ago, when digital technology wasn’t as widely available, I believe we would have had to give up the fashion features entirely.

Vogue Japan’s Milan-based creative director at large Anna dello Russo attended Fashion Week in Paris. As there had already been an increase in coronavirus infections in Milan, she avoided taking a flight and travelled to Paris by car. It took her nearly nine hours. In order to prepare the next season’s Vogue Japan cover and fashion photoshoots, she chose to avoid any potential risk at the airport while transporting the sample clothing.

At Vogue Japan, our remote working has been extended by another two weeks and it’s made us realise that our way of working will change with the development of technology. Many people on the editorial team are happy about the increased time they can spend with their families and the situation of working women has become a key topic that will hopefully trigger social change. Jobs where you can work from home are limited, and there are a lot of households with schools closed that are having trouble balancing childcare with work. As is the case in most countries, it is usually the women who have to carry the extra burden. In this situation, the gender gap in society has become obvious.

While we currently see no light at the end of the tunnel, the phrase “corona depression” has been circulating on the internet. We are experiencing a crisis situation and people are stockpiling daily necessities. But we need to look forward and ask ourselves what would they long for after they have secured their daily lives? They would want to see beautiful things to bring hope and make them feel excited. I believe that fashion and our work will play a role in that.

Also read:

How the Italian luxury fashion industry is responding to the coronavirus pandemic

2020 Tokyo Olympics: Everything you need to know