Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Hitoshi Sagaseki. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hitoshi, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Looking back, what’s an important lesson you learned at a prior job?

I started working for a Japanese cosmetics company as a packaging designer. While working on several brands in Japan, I was able to learn about advertising and store design, and acquired a wide range of creative skills that are useful in my current branding work. I also spent two years on secondment to the New Business Development Department, where I was involved in the launch and marketing of new brands and learnt the basics of business. My experience of working in Europe and U.S. also helped me to gain a broad understanding of the market, which is very useful in my work.

Hitoshi, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hitoshi Sagaseki(Founder and CEO of J-Collabo and Brooklyn Beauty/Fashion Labo): After graduating from the Japanese design College, he joined Shiseido’s advertising department in 1996. After working in the International Business Planning Department for European Market in 2005, he moved to Shiseido Cosmetics America, where he was in charge of the North American market. After becoming independent in 2009, he was involved in branding for major cosmetics and apparel makers such as L’Oreal, Unilever, P&G, and Coty, as well as launching new brands such as Tatcha and Wei Beauty and more.

J-Collabo was founded in 2008 as a NY State 501(c)3 non-profit organization and started as an online gallery with the theme of “Experience Japan in Brooklyn.” The gallery also published interviews with prominent Japanese in the U.S., including RyuichiSakamoto, Hiroshi Sugimoto, and Shinzo Abe etc. In addition, J-Collabo was involved in the planning and management of many cultural events, including a charity event for the Great East Japan Earthquake at St. John the Divine Cathedral, and a tourism promotion event at Grand Central Station. BELLA GAIA, a collaboration of traditional Japanese performing arts such as Gagaku and Noh, and video of the Universe by NASA, has been successfully performed at NYU Skirball, Yakushiji Temple, and Himuro Shrine.

Since 2014, J-Collabo has established a permanent base in Brooklyn, where it plans and manages educational programs on traditional Japanese culture such as tea ceremonies, flower arrangement, calligraphy, rakugo and Noh, and traditional crafts such as bamboo crafts, pottery, lacquer ware, and Japanese paper. Under the concept of “Brooklyn + Japan,” J-Collabo providesfree community events to connect with local people. In addition, since 2017, J-Collabo has held an annual art group exhibition, providing opportunities for outstanding artists to showcase their work, including solo exhibitions in the U.S. and Japan.

In 2024, J-Collabo will launch “Brooklyn Beauty/Fashion Labo” with BBFL Sustainable LLC, a joint venture of about 35 Japanese companies. The 25,000 sqft facility (Basement, 1st~3rd floor, Rooftop) includes an art gallery, cafe, grocery, hair/nail/facial/eye lash salon, yomogi sauna, upcycle store, and local product showroom. The store proposes a total lifestyle based on the concept of “Bridging Cultures, Unveiling Creativity” A series of Japan-U.S. hybrid products also are developed and introduced to the world. In addition, various programs and
events are planned to nurture the next generation.The following 35 companies, beauty, fashion, food and other manufacturers, as well as companies and educational institutions in various fields etc., will support J-Collaborative and join BBFL Sustainable LLC, which is expected to becom a team of 300 Japanese and U.S. companies in the future. They will plan programs and events to promote various Japan-US cultural exchanges and foster future generations.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

The Brooklyn Beauty/Fashion Lab will co-develop a lifestyle product line and market it in the US, Japan and internationally. Members work together to generate new ideas for the lab, which aims to create lifestyle brands in the areas of cosmetics, food, fashion and general merchandise.

For cosmetics and apparel, it was not difficult to find collaborators and OEMs as they have connections in Japan and the US, but for food they are seeking advice from various people as they move forward. We selected companies with expertise in the Japanese and US markets to work with.

How’d you meet your business partner?

I met the co-founder, Sachi Shimoda, some time after I launched the NPO J-collabo. At the time, Sachi was participating as an instructor in J-collabo’s manga workshops for people with disabilities, but J-collabo had no base of operations. Now, the two are working together to develop and operate a center for international exchange between Japan and the U.S. that will last for generations to come.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://brooklyn-bbfl.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brooklynbeautyfashionlabo/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brooklynbbfl
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hitoshi-sagaseki-53634017
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiYFJwEOgd1QZYLbiiTaA3A

Image Credits

@Brooklyn Beauty/Fashion Labo