Atmos has been a staple name when it comes to collaborations. If you think of some of the most expensive and exclusive Nike Air Max 1s, atmos is the name attached to that group of grails (besides the Patta collabs). Atmos has a distinct signature style for the most part when they approach a collaboration. Before JBF Customs and all those customizing guys using animal skin, atmos was already mixing all the crazy animal prints since the early 2000’s. The difference is that atmos uses faux skins and furs but they also don’t just stick to animal they also pay homage to the Harajuku fashion styles so they are able to get crazier with the color schemes.
Atmos started off as a very small shop located in Ura-Harajuku out in Japan and has slowly moved overseas into the states to the mecca of the sneaker culture, New York. There they established a store out in Harlem where Complex has named them one of the top 50 sneaker shops you must visit. Besides the Harlem location there are two other main shops, their flagship store in Meiji Dori and a collaborative store with Nike in Shinjuku and a few other pop up shops sprinkled around Japan. Their stores are tier zero accounts, where they get all and the most exclusive releases.
Though pretty much off the grid, atmos is pretty much an entity where you don’t hear much about the person/persons behind them. That’s because they move as a unit of three. About 20 years ago, Hidefumi Hommyo, founded and started atmos and added designer Hirofumi Kojima and buyer for the company Shiho Nakamura. The three of them mainly run the atmos sneaker empire and head all the biggest company decisions. Over the course of the years they have collaborated and did some of the biggest collaborations in streetwear from their most famous sneaker collaborations to toys. They have teamed up with big companies such as Nike, Puma, New Balance, Reebok, Adidas pretty much any of the largest sneaker brands and produced grails for the streets. Along with their sneakers, they have also produced an atmos magazine, have had their hands in watch and bag designs as well hats, apparel and toys.
