Oku Shibu-kei

In the early 2000s, people began using the word ‘Ura-Shibuya’ which literally means ‘behind Shibuya’ to describe the back areas of Shibuya such as Shinsen, Nanpeidai-cho and Sakuragaoka-cho. In 2006, Ura-Shibuya-style fashion was introduced by the men’s fashion magazine ‘Men’s egg’ as a new trend. However, it wasn’t a completely new style and not that different from ‘gyaruo’ fashion. A gyaruo is usually characterized by his deep tanned skin, dyed hair, and liking for flashy clothes. Recently, a new fashion trend has emerged from the ‘Oku-Shibuya’ (‘the depths of Shibuya’) area. According to the Internet sources and among apparel staff working in Shibuya, Oku-Shibuya is a term used to describe the areas around Shoto and Kamiyama. Fashion trends in these parts of Shibuya is a mixture of all different styles but its main source is ‘gyaru’ (the female version of gyaruo) fashion and it also reminds us of ‘Ura-Hara-kei’ (the type of fashion that emerged from the back areas of Harajuku). We would like to share with you the world of ‘Oku-Shibuya’ we found in Shoto, Kamiyama as well as the Jinnan area close to Harajuku.