What happens when two brands that have spent decades rejecting the mainstream finally meet?
Not a licensing deal negotiated by lawyers. Not a marketing stunt designed for Instagram hype. Not a collaboration born from spreadsheets projecting resale value.
Something rarer: a collision of two philosophies that have been running parallel for years, refusing to compromise, building cult followings, and proving that staying true to your vision—no matter how long it takes—eventually finds its audience.
This is the story of KICKXOTIC and beautybeast. And the result of that collision is AIB: Aesthetics in the Beast.
In 1990, Takao Yamashita started beautybeast in Tokyo's Ura-Harajuku scene, channeling personal anxiety into fashion as non-verbal expression. He built a brand on the belief that fashion could communicate what language couldn't. For over three decades, beautybeast has remained cult status in Japan with renewed global interest in recent years, but never mainstream. Never compromised.
In 2018, I started KICKXOTIC in my childhood bedroom in Bangkok. No investors, no factory partnerships, no shortcuts. Just a pattern maker's table, premium leather, and an obsession with controlling every step in-house. I taught myself shoemaking door-to-door, learning from local artisans who showed me techniques. Mastery—that I had to pursue on my own. We are built on the belief that sneakers can communicate things that don't need to be said.
Two founders. Two cities. Two decades apart. But the same refusal to bend.
Yamashita has built beautybeast as his life's work. I have "KICKXOTIC" tattooed on my body. Neither commitment is metaphorical.
Neither brand fits neatly into a single culture. Both are products of collision.
beautybeast emerged from Tokyo's punk and hip-hop scene, but drew inspiration from French folklore (the brand name itself), British bondage aesthetics (Vivienne Westwood's influence), and biblical symbolism. Yamashita created a visual language that blended mythology with punk aggression, using fashion as symbolic communication for emotions like joy, fear, and hope. A brand that feels distinctly Japanese but refuses to be contained by Japanese fashion conventions.
My origin is equally hybrid. The spark came in San Francisco, where I first saw custom sneakers. The attitude came from observing Savile Row tailors in London—their commitment to mastery of their craft. The craft itself I learned in Bangkok, teaching myself door-to-door from local artisans. Mastery—that I had to pursue on my own.
Neither brand is "pure." Both are stronger because they're not.
When Yamashita and I started talking about this collaboration, it felt different from the beginning.
We weren't trying to combine logos or chase a trend. We were two people who'd spent our careers building something from nothing, refusing shortcuts, staying true to what we believed—finally finding alignment. He would design the vision. My team and I would execute the craft. Every pair rebuilt from the sole up by hand in Bangkok, using materials he selected, following a design philosophy we both share: greatness is earned, not given.
Two philosophies converged and created something neither of us could have made alone.
The name says it all: Aesthetics in the Beast.
beautybeast has always operated on the belief that beauty exists within the beast—that the dualities of light and shadow, good and evil, aggression and elegance can coexist. Yamashita's work pulls from biblical symbolism, punk nihilism, and French folklore to create visual language that communicates what words can't.
We've always believed that sneakers are identity—not just product, but personal statement. That true luxury isn't logos or limited drops, but craftsmanship, storytelling, and the relentless pursuit of perfection.
AIB brings both philosophies into one silhouette.
The design concept: a dress sneaker. Premium materials applied to a street icon—black patent leather, genuine crocodile, pony hair calfskin. Textures that refuse to scream, instead demanding closer inspection. Luxury through restraint, not excess.
The pixelated Nike Swoosh is Yamashita's signature disruption—a digital corruption of an analog icon. It references the way underground culture gets distorted, pixelated, compressed, and reinterpreted as it moves through digital spaces. Punk disruption applied to one of the most recognizable symbols in footwear.
The elongated tongue breaks proportion intentionally. Where most sneakers prioritize balance and symmetry, AIB stretches the tongue to create visual tension. A subtle rebellion against "correct" design—a nod to punk's love of distortion and beautybeast's history of rejecting conventional aesthetics.
Every material choice, every design detail, every proportion shift serves a purpose: to create something that feels both familiar and foreign. Luxury and underground. Refined and rebellious.
This is the aesthetics in the beast.
When Yamashita finalized the design, our team began the process we use for every pair: complete deconstruction and reconstruction. We take an authentic Air Jordan 1 High apart, preserve the sole, and rebuild everything else.
I source the materials—black patent leather, genuine black crocodile (full hides, not embossed), black pony hair calfskin. The team hand-cuts each panel paying attention to grain direction, assembles the upper, and reattaches the sole through gluing, heating, and hand-stitching.
I inspect every pair and personally lace each one. The process takes 7-8 days. Timeline: 4-8 weeks.
When you buy AIB, you're buying the convergence of two underground brands that have never needed partnerships or hype. You're buying a design created by Takao Yamashita after 30+ years building beautybeast. You're buying handcraft—every pair cut, pulled, and assembled in our studio, with me personally lacing each one.
You're buying genuine crocodile, premium patent leather, and pony hair calfskin. And you're buying limited production based on real constraints—we can only take 10-15 projects per month. AIB is one of them.
This is the first collaboration between beautybeast and KICKXOTIC. It may be the only one.
If you've been following beautybeast's journey or ours, you know what this represents. If you understand the difference between manufactured and real culture, you know this is rare.
Two brands that refuse compromise.
Two founders who made their commitments permanent—literally and philosophically.
Bangkok meets Tokyo. Bespoke craft meets cult icon.
This isn't fusion. It's alignment.
