BY JAY AQUINO

JANUARY 19. 2026

Satoshi Kuwata’s Fall/Winter 2026 collection for Setchu asserts itself as one of Milan Fashion Week's most inventive and thoughtful collection. It begins with Greenland: a landscape so inhospitable it forces ingenuity, efficiency, and respect. Kuwata’s fascination with the island was ostensibly for its fishing, yet it is the extremity of its terrain—ice, relentless wind, near-total silence—that shapes the collection. Inuit resourcefulness, crafting survival garments from limited materials like seal skin, and Japan’s Ainu traditions of reverence for nature, converge in Kuwata’s approach in fashion.

IMAGE SOURCE: VOGUE RUNWAY

IMAGE SOURCE: VOGUE RUNWAY

This is functionality made intelligent. Setchu’s pieces are mutable, transformable, disciplined. Outerwear dominates with structural intent: shoulders and armholes echo animal forms and the posture of humans enduring cold, producing volumes that cocoon, ridges that reference mountains, curves both natural and engineered.

Pinstripe tailoring is angular, elongated, uncompromising—jacket hems reveal thigh-high leather boots, fringed trousers punctuate strict geometries. Slouchy puffers retain structure without surrendering comfort; vinyl-like coats layer over skirts and shirts, while fur is purely protective. Every material, every detail signals deliberation. Handwoven, straw-inspired slippers and boots establish the collection’s focus on elemental necessity and purposeful design.

Accessories are both playful and precise. Furry bags with fish-shaped handles nod to Kuwata’s Greenlandic obsession, merging Japanese and Western references with an exacting sense of wit. Iridescent surfaces echo animal skins, woven straw and tactile furs reinforce scarcity as strength.

Setchu merges British tailoring precision with Japanese ingenuity, crafting garments that adapt, persist, and reward those who understand that taste is measured by what truly matters.

Discover Setchu Fall/Winter 2026 collection here.