CreditAndrew White for The New York Times
Industry City, a historic warehouse complex in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, has been transformed into a family-friendly warren of boutiques and food halls. The most recent addition, Japan Village, offers 20,000 square feet of noodles, groceries and more.
Last Saturday, some 15,000 visitors came to eat, roller skate and shop for the holidays. Here’s how eight of them dressed for the gray December afternoon.
Donnie Kwak
Age: 41
Occupation: editor at The Ringer
You were at Japan Village. What’s the verdict?
Underwhelmed. Food wasn’t very good and it was overcrowded. We go to Mitsuwa in New Jersey often, and this is far inferior.
Why did you choose that jacket?
I used to work at Complex and I was going on trip to Korea, and I saw this jacket in the fashion closet. They let me keep it.
I love a good caper. Your pants are patchy.
I bought these at Urban Outfitters, next to ArcLight in Los Angeles.
You must know your sneakers from Complex. What are those?
Air Max 98. In the Air Max tree, it’s a less popular one. So that makes it more unique. But I like them because they’re comfortable and kind of clunky.
Eva Soroken (with Taea)
Age: 37
Occupation: fashion and beauty consultant
Your coat is somewhere between teddy bear and Gritty.
It’s by Caron Callahan, and it’s made in New York. I have a lot of fleeces but this is special, with the silk on the inside. And then I wanted to match Taea.
You work in the United States and Japan. You must have a specific opinion of denim.
Yeah. These I found at a vintage store in Tokyo. They put so much energy into keeping the jeans’ shape. And they’re clean, too. The vintage stores do not smell like vintage.
Are those moccasins on your feet?
I work with the designer — they’re called Raku. She made these for Taea too.
Dashawn “Kenzo” Mckenzie
Age: 26
Occupation: fashion designer, -cide
Explain the name of your label.
Suicide, fratricide, homicide — the meaning behind the brand is to kill it. When you’re rocking your fit, you’re killing it.
Did you design anything you’re wearing?
These pants. They’re called -cide Jackson jeans, and they have straps with Velcro that you can attach and adjust to your liking.
Your yellow jacket really stands out.
I got it at Zara. Wifey pointed it out. I felt like it could pop, especially if you have simple solid colors underneath.
Are those Jordans?
They’re Jordan 1s, or a Nike Dunk. I customized these with my brand using a heated adhesive and reflective material.
Chloë Boxer
Age: 28
Occupation: graduate student, fiction writing
Are you wearing a jumpsuit?
Overalls, by & Other Stories, I think. Tights and a sweater underneath, so they’re good for layering.
Your coat has fun buttons.
This is a vintage coat and it used to have all of the same buttons, but one came off, so I replaced all of them. One is from a set of vintage buttons I bought a long time ago. These two I bought at Mood, the fabric store.
So D.I.Y.
I was a costume designer in another life.
I like your hat.
I’m all about texture. I think it’s supposed to be a sun hat. I bought it at a bookstore in Hong Kong this summer.
Annapurna Rogers
Age: 35
Occupation: manager of Arcade vintage
Are you wearing vintage?
Top to bottom.
Let’s start with your cool glasses.
These are gold-framed vintage Laura Biagiotti from Italy. They’re a more modern cut, with little vintage touches like enamel flowers in the corner.
How about the jewelry?
This is a friend of mine, Jen Cogliantry, JC Handmade. This was cast after the large septum ring they put into bulls in Japan.
Tell me about the dress
Nelly Don is the designer. It’s a 1950s or 1960s dress, but it has a very modern cut to it. This was a secret L Train Vintage find.
Erik Raney
Age: 30
Occupation: account manager for an advertising agency
Where did you get the trench coat?
There was an old gentleman that died in my neighborhood, and he was an immaculate dresser. And his kids had a stoop sale. We literally wore the same size in everything.
How nice for you.
Yeah, I scored. They were just giving this stuff away.
You’re a black-jean guy.
I really like Rollas. They have that stretch.
I love that you’re repping the parks department on your cap.
This is my favorite thing. Only NY, on Stanton. Every season they come out with a few items: They have a Prospect Park sweatshirt.
Ru Jing Liu
Age: 24
Occupation: trim buyer
What are all those things pinned to your sweater?
This is Nautica. It’s my dad’s. There’s all these things I got from trim buying: this is a button, this pearl is from an earring, and this is from the back of an eyelet, and then this is a cord end. And then this is a very regular safety pin.
And you’ve got a beaded necklace.
I don’t know if you follow Superwoman, she’s a YouTuber.
I do not.
She’s got this charity line called the Rafiki. You buy this and the money goes to a charity of your choice, whether it’s education or water.
And then your boots.
They’re men’s. I have very big feet. I’m a size 11 in women’s, so I wear a 9 in men’s. They fit my feet exactly right. You can just trample. Women’s shoes feel more delicate.
Dina Zukic
Age: 32
Occupation: customer service manager for a tech firm
Are you Christmas shopping?
And for our apartment. We like coming here. Last wear we found a print we put up in our bedroom. And some candle holders.
You have a great deal of denim on.
I do. The jeans I just threw on, they’re comfortable. But I had retired the jacket for the season. It’s my boyfriend’s that I borrow sometimes.
Is he cool with that?
He is, if he doesn’t want to wear it.
That’s nice. What about your scarf?
I’ve had the scarf for probably nine years. It’s from a store called Joyce Leslie, in Connecticut. It’s a place I shopped a lot when I was in college, for going-out clothes.
Life as a Runway is a regular column where we interrogate the visual presentation of a group of people at an event or location.
