"When I wear it in town, people often stop and ask me where I got it. When I tell them it's hand-embroidered, they often don't believe me (laughs)." With motifs of American and Japanese culture, Otakara NYC stands out even on the streets of New York, where happenings happen all the time, with its pop and tasteful embroidery that can only be achieved through handwork.
Suzuki Satoshi, who moved to the United States in 1988 as a vintage buyer and is currently in charge of sales at a showroom that handles American interior design, started embroidering after a comment from his partner, Fumi.
"It all started when I had some free time during the coronavirus pandemic. I remembered that when I was younger, I used to like wearing embroidered chambray shirts, the kind of things hippies often wore. I wanted to wear them again, so I looked online, but I just couldn't find anything that suited my current mood. Then my wife said, 'If they don't have them, why don't you make one yourself?' So I immediately went to a local craft store to buy some thread and a sampler."
Although she had no prior experience with embroidery, she has always loved making things with her hands, and as she continued to teach herself, friends around her began to ask her to try her hand at embroidery.
In addition to embroidery thread, we also use sashiko thread, which comes in a wide variety of colors and specifications. 
Naugamonster is a vinyl leather advertising character developed by Uniroyal, which he also incorporates into his own designs. 
He says he is inspired by the patterns made by Native Americans.
"Whenever I finished a motif, I would post it on Instagram, and my long-time friend Daiki Suzuki of Engineered Garments contacted me and asked if I could bring it to his office because he wanted to see my work. After he saw it along with the scrapbook I had drawn the motif in, he asked if we could collaborate, and we decided to do a pop-up at NEPENTHES NY. At the time, I didn't even have a brand name yet, but I quickly made it."
When collaborating, we draw sketches and then build the design. 
These are the sources of inspiration. The totem pole embroidered on the original sweatshirt was also inspired by these.
Her motifs, which she draws whenever an idea comes to her mind, range from pop art by Keith Haring and Andy Warhol, to her favorite American culture such as Mickey Mouse, Snoopy, Native Americans and folk art such as totem poles, to Japanese elements such as Mount Fuji, bonsai and ukiyo-e. The two different cultures blend together in a chaotic yet beautiful way, thanks to the hand embroidery, which she describes as "a good but bad taste."
“I started embroidery for myself, but through collaborations with brands from my old friends, such as Post Overalls, Battenwear, and Mountain Research, as well as KITH, I was able to see the direction of my future as a brand.
I still enjoy the process of making things, and I will continue to make one-of-a-kind items that I handle from design to embroidery, as I have done until now, but I am also thinking about starting a line that I can deliver to a wider audience. There is a limit to the amount I can make if I'm the only one. However, I would like to stick to hand embroidery in my new challenges, such as collaborating with a company that can produce by hand."
This is a custom shirt for personal use, featuring embroidery added to a product created in collaboration with NEPENTHES in the spring of 2024. The shirt will be sold for 40,000 to 50,000 yen. Embroidered items will be sold at irregular pop-up events, so keep an eye on social media. 
On the right is a sweatshirt from Otakara NYC, featuring a totem pole motif, while on the left is a personal embroidered tweed jacket from Engineered Garments. 
Originally it only had Mount Fuji on it, but "before I knew it I had added one or two more embroideries (laughs)." 
A T-shirt with the New York Magazine font as its motif.
