Japanese Mall Fashion (Photo Collection)

It’s always interesting to see what kind of clothing people in other countries wear. The easiest way to find popular fashion styles is to go roaming around malls and see what they have on mannequins.

“Mall fashion” here means just the stuff they sell in mainstream stores, and it’s the stuff that people actually wear day-to-day, not necessarily street fashion styles.

While there’s some crossover between cultures around the world (like altheisure), you can often find certain styles, colors, or fabrics that are more popular in some countries than others. Like in most Asian countries I’ve been to, for instance, they’ll have spaghetti strap dresses ALWAYS displayed with a shirt underneath– whereas in America and Western Europe, the dress would just be on its own.

So! Here’s a collection of photos from different Japanese mall stores that I took over my last two visits. I’ll add more photos whenever I go back to Japan!

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Guidebook: Lonely Planet is my go-to for detailed guidebooks, and their Japan guidebook was just updated in April 2024. Win!

What's In This Post

L.L. Bean

I LOVE looking at what American brands have for sale in other countries! L.L. Bean is a preppy outdoors brand (basically) and they still kept that feeling for their Japanese market, but they adjusted some items to fit better to what’s popular over there.

The one major thing I noticed was they have skirts that are way longer than you’d normally see in the US. It’s still the same fabric as the shorter skirts (and shorts) but definitely a maxi length.

Columbia

Another fun brand to look for in other countries. They stick to their smart-sporty look, but they adjust it for local tastes. The Columbia in Japan has a lot more wide-leg culottes than anywhere else I’ve seen.

GU

GU is like the cheaper, hipper sister brand to Uniqlo! Their clothes are a bit more casual and younger than Uniqlo.

I like the style a lot in here but I did notice the clothes felt significantly cheaper, definitely more on the side of “fast fashion”– which I guess makes sense because of the lower price.

Lots of crop tops in the back, but then you pair it with maxi skirts and long pants.

Misc. Boutiques

A collection of photos of random mannequins from various places:

Coordinating outfits from Mademoiselle NON NON

Another layered sporty look here, very L.L. Bean. Also note the dress with the ruffled neck and wrists.

Definitely one of the more “out there” mannequins I spotted

Casual beach vacation vibes from DanaParis with linen outfits.

One of the only places with loud print clothing. Reminds me a bit of Jam’s World.

A grandma outfit, but I do like the colors and the layering reminds me of lagenlook style.

Cute sporty looks, reminds me a bit of Gap in the 90s maybe.

Some linen outfits in a neutral tan color.

I really like the layering on these mannequins.

I saw a lot of this ruffled neckline, which screams 1980s grandma to me but a lot of young people wear that style in Japan and elsewhere in Asia.

A linen outfit– would be great for Japanese summers, which are famously muggy.

Final Thoughts

While I didn’t do much clothing shopping for myself during my visits to Japan, I do still enjoy seeing what they have on sale. It’s interesting too that the majority of the “mall style” was so similar to each other, though you can definitely find some different outfits if you go to malls in hipper neighborhoods. Would you go shopping for clothes at Japanese malls?