Ambush Launches Monograph, Eyes Future Ventures

PARIS — It took Yoon Ahn and Verbal several years to put together their first book on Ambush, but as far as the duo are concerned, the 288-page tome is only the start of a new chapter they are writing for the brand.

Ahn, creative director of Ambush, said publisher Rizzoli first reached out before the coronavirus pandemic, but she felt it was too early for such a milestone. “I used to think that books were for people much later in their career,” she told WWD by video conference from Tokyo.

When the monograph comes out on March 4, it will mark 10 years since Ambush started showing its collections during Paris Fashion Week, signaling its ambition to become an international force.

During that period, Ambush embarked on an ongoing partnership with sportswear giant Nike, where Ahn holds the title of global women’s curator. In 2020, New Guards Group — the Farfetch division currently undergoing a restructuring and debt management process under Italian bankruptcy law — bought a controlling stake in the label.

“We’re thinking about the next step, where we’re going to go, and a book is always a great way to be retrospective on your own work,” Ahn said.

“Sometimes, you forget you worked on some pieces, because it’s always, ‘Next, next, next!’ You know how the fashion system is,” she added. “So it puts things in such a big perspective in a journey.”

In addition to providing a comprehensive overview of Ambush’s transition from jewelry brand to full ready-to-wear and accessories label, the book features contributions from friends and collaborators including Kim Jones, Pharrell Williams, Chitose Abe, Kid Cudi, Hiroshi Fujiwara, G-Dragon, Kaws and Jun Takahashi, among others.

A launch party is planned in Paris on March 5 at Cravan, the five-story cocktail venue that houses the French capital’s first and only Rizzoli bookstore.

The couple branched out into fashion almost by accident. Their first pieces were created in 2008 as a pet project for Verbal, who made his name in the Japanese hip-hop scene as part of M-Flo and subsequently the Teriyaki Boyz, the group that also includes DJ and designer Nigo.

Craving bold, irreverent jewelry, they came up with a diamond-studded knuckle ring shaped like a classic “POW!” comic book bubble. Soon, they were making similar pieces as custom creations for the likes of Kanye West, Big Sean, Cudi and Williams. Ahn said they didn’t start designing seasonal collections until 2012.

“We didn’t even know what buying season was,” recalled the Korean-American designer, who studied graphic design at Boston University. “We were like hobbyists that turn into actual professionals, and we didn’t go to fashion school, so all these things that we learned along the way, we wanted to just see how far we can go with it.”

Pretty far, it turns out. By 2017, with only two full-blown unisex apparel collections under its belt, Ambush made it to the finals of the LVMH Prize for Young Designers.

Karl Lagerfeld, who was involved with the prize since its launch, spent some time at the Ambush booth during the semifinalists’ showroom presentation, checking out its designs informed by subcultures and countercultures, and incorporating everyday objects such as office stationery, safety pins, padlocks and disposable lighters.

“He said that it was very fun, but also very elegant at the same time, and I thought that was very interesting, because I’d never heard someone describe our jewelry as elegant — but hey, if Karl says so…” Ahn recalled with a smile.

He recalled the encounter when Ambush subsequently reached the finals, which involved Ahn making a presentation to a jury of industry heavy hitters.

“It made me feel like we were doing something right for him to actually remember,” she said. “It was more about assurance, getting feedback from the giants, the people that I looked up to. It made me feel that I can go further with the vision that we were building.”

Further cementing her foothold in the industry, Ahn went on to log a multiyear stint as jewelry designer for Dior’s menswear division under Jones, even as Ambush developed separate men’s and women’s collections and expanded into other categories, including handbags and footwear.

While the brand has collaborated with everyone from Sacai and Undercover to Bulgari, Rimowa and most recently, Ugg, Ahn wanted the book to focus on its own aesthetic — perhaps also to remind industry observers of the origin of some ideas that have since entered the fashion vernacular.

“Sometimes they come around, commenting on some of the stuff that we recently worked on. They’ll be like, ‘Oh, it looks like so and so.’ But I’m like, ‘No, no, no: we actually did this a while ago,’” she said. “I’m just sampling myself.”

The $65 book’s canvas hardcover is perforated to offer glimpses of campaign images and product details. Ahn says each circle represents a different planet, reflecting the idea that there is not one signature Ambush look. “Each collection is so uniquely different, just the way the planets are in the universe,” she said.

“I want people to see the variety of things that we were able to make, not so much like a singular message, but almost like a beautiful buffet menu. You can look at it and you can kind of cherry-pick what you like to enjoy as a reader and consumer,” she added.

While initially concerned that she did not have enough material for one book, she now thinks there is enough for several volumes. Since Ambush launched its proprietary metaverse, Silver Fctry, in tandem with a runway show at Milan Fashion Week in 2022, she also dreams of using print as a launchpad for an online project.

“We always looked at fashion as a platform to exercise ideas, definitely going into the gaming space, as well as continuing in the metaverse space. Now, crypto is coming back, so I think it’s going to be even more exciting than in the early 2020s era. The potential is limitless to me,” she remarked.

In the immediate future, further signings are planned in Hong Kong and Tokyo, where Ambush plans to stage an event at the end of March at its Ginza boutique. Following its decade-long spin around the globe, the brand sees its next act playing out where it all began — with the DNA laid out in the book providing the blueprint.

“It’s going to be much more rooted in where we are, which is Tokyo and Japan, but in the futurism of it. And then from there, we’re also going to leap into the next generation and next chapter of where we want to go, so I’m excited,” Ahn said.