# COMME des GARÇONS

> COMME des GARÇONS is a ready-to-wear label based in Tokyo and Paris, Japan, started in 1969. Behind the label: Rei Kawakubo. Known for sculptural womenswear that questions conventional ideas of beauty and fit.

- Canonical: https://thecastindex.com/designers/comme-des-garcons
- Country guide: https://thecastindex.com/houses/japanese-designers
- Facts checked: 2026-10-22
- Author: Kaiser Khan (Founder & Editor)

## Quick facts

- Behind the label: Rei Kawakubo
- Based: Tokyo and Paris, Japan
- Since: 1969
- Focus: Ready-to-wear
- Makes: Womenswear and menswear, including the Homme Plus line shown in Paris
- Official site: https://www.comme-des-garcons.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/commedesgarcons/

## Who is behind COMME des GARÇONS?

Rei Kawakubo, born in 1942 according to The Met, began making womenswear under the Comme des Garçons name in 1969, incorporated the company in 1973 and added menswear in 1978, the Fédération records. The first show was in Tokyo in 1975, a Paris company followed in 1981, and she still leads the house. The Kyoto Costume Institute holds an Autumn/Winter 1983 knit ensemble cut largely from one straight panel. In 2017 The Met’s Costume Institute gave her its first monographic show on a living designer since Yves Saint Laurent in 1983. The womenswear, and Homme Plus menswear, showed on every official Paris calendar we checked from FW24 to SS27; the company also houses Junya Watanabe and Noir Kei Ninomiya, Kei Ninomiya’s label since 2012.

## Timeline

- 1969: Rei Kawakubo starts making womenswear under the Comme des Garçons name. (source: https://www.fhcm.paris/en/house/comme-des-garcons)
- 1975: Holds its first show, in Tokyo. (source: https://www.fhcm.paris/en/house/comme-des-garcons)
- 1981: Sets up a company in Paris. (source: https://www.fhcm.paris/en/house/comme-des-garcons)
- 4 May 2017: The Met opens Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between, on view until 4 September 2017. (source: https://www.metmuseum.org/press-releases/rei-kawakubo-2016-exhibitions)
- 3 October 2026: Shows its SS27 womenswear on the official Paris calendar. (source: https://www.fhcm.paris/en/upcoming-seasons-and-previous-editions)

## Sources

- [FHCM — Comme des Garçons house page](https://www.fhcm.paris/en/house/comme-des-garcons) — checked 2026-10-22
- [FHCM — Noir Kei Ninomiya house page](https://www.fhcm.paris/en/house/noir-kei-ninomiya) — checked 2026-10-22
- [The Met — Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between (exhibition page)](https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2017/rei-kawakubo) — checked 2026-10-22
- [The Met — press release for the 2017 Kawakubo exhibition](https://www.metmuseum.org/press-releases/rei-kawakubo-2016-exhibitions) — checked 2026-10-22
- [Kyoto Costume Institute — Rei Kawakubo sweater and skirt, Autumn/Winter 1983](https://www.kci.or.jp/en/archives/digital_archives/1980s/KCI_261) — checked 2026-10-22
- [FHCM — official calendars, FW24 to SS27](https://www.fhcm.paris/en/upcoming-seasons-and-previous-editions) — checked 2026-10-22