In Shibuya, Tokyo, Levi’s® brings together fashion, music, creativity, and denim heritage for a five-day takeover featuring global ambassador ROSÉ of BLACKPINK.&nbsp;

In Shibuya, Tokyo, Levi’s® brings together fashion, music, creativity, and denim heritage for a five-day takeover featuring global ambassador ROSÉ of BLACKPINK. The experience includes the&nbsp;Levi’s® x ROSÉ collection, DIY zine-making, an archival look at the brand’s denim fits, performances, and conversations with artists and creatives.
As Levi’s® continues to expand across Asia, L’Officiel Philippines sits down with Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer&nbsp;Kenny Mitchell to discuss the region’s growing influence, the brand’s place in culture, and what it takes to stay iconic.

L’Officiel: Why was Tokyo the right place for this, and why is Asia important to Levi’s?
Kenny Mitchell: Tokyo is a critically important market for us. It’s highly influential, highly style-driven, with a passion and love for denim that’s really apparent. It almost serves as a beacon to what’s possible around the globe for us at Levi’s®.
Asia is a priority region for us. We have ambitions to be a $10 billion company, and there’s no way we can get there without driving significant growth in Asia. Japan, Korea, and China are key areas of focus, and we continue to see tremendous headroom and opportunity in the region.
L’Officiel: Levi’s® has been an icon for more than 150 years. What has kept the brand relevant?
Kenny Mitchell: Quality and authenticity never go out of style. We consider our purpose as a brand to outfit the world’s originals and those in pursuit of progress.
What’s amazing is that the brand has receipts for all of this. We started by outfitting miners during the Gold Rush, then became a brand adopted by hard workers and people who were often counter-cultural, from Woodstock to artists like Basquiat and Andy Warhol.
From Princess Diana to Barack Obama to musicians and artists alike, that was true back in the day and it’s very true right now. We were iconic in the 1800s and still very much have that seat in the 2020s.
L’Officiel: How intentional is Levi’s® about being part of fashion, music, and art?
Kenny Mitchell: We are extremely intentional about that from a strategy perspective. Being at the center of culture can mean showing up with iconic people or in iconic places, but it can also mean going deep into subcultures, because that’s where culture gets formed.
Music is an important part of that. We work with platforms and artists to connect with the roots of music and culture within the countries where we operate.
Levi’s® is also highly elastic and democratic as a brand. You can see someone working construction with their Levi’s® on, and then you might see us on a runway. There aren’t a lot of brands that have that type of elasticity.
We prioritize fashion, music, sport, and arts and creativity—places where self-expression is really important.

L’Officiel: How do you balance Levi’s® global identity with the different cultures across Asia?
Kenny Mitchell: We want to show up consistently as a global brand, but operate in ways that are highly relevant in the markets in which we serve.
If you were to put a store in Japan next to a store in Singapore next to a store in Mexico City, it’ll feel like a Levi’s® store and a Levi’s® experience. But the way we express ourselves needs to be deeply relevant locally.
We have design collaborations and talent partnerships, so we have different ways of showing up that are highly relevant within each market. It’s about driving consistency while being deeply relevant in market.
L’Officiel: What do brands need to understand about the Asian consumer?
Kenny Mitchell: Saying “Asian” is painting with an extremely broad brush. The consumer in China is different from the consumer in Japan, the Philippines, or India.
You have to understand what is similar and what is unique within a specific market or culture. Aspiration and self-expression are highly important across many Asian markets, and being conscious of trends is another thing we see consistently.
But some cultures might be more conservative, while others might be more style-forward and flashy. We want to look at each market based on what’s happening there, the consumer, and the culture, and figure out how Levi’s® can take shape there.
L’Officiel: How is Levi’s® connecting with younger consumers through social media and digital communities?
Kenny Mitchell: The way our fans discover, investigate, and learn about our products and what our brand means has changed a ton. A lot of that happens through social media, creators, and influencers.
We work significantly with creators who help define trends or provide inspiration for our fans. The majority of our media investment globally is digital, which reflects how the media landscape is changing.
What you see on the horizon is discovery beginning to shift from the social media feed to literally the prompt—using AI and LLMs to learn, discover, and get recommendations directly.
We need to make sure we’re not just relevant to how people connect with brands right now, but that we’re preparing for the future.

L’Officiel: What does the growing visibility of Asian women in global fashion and pop culture mean for Levi’s®?
Kenny Mitchell: Social and digital media have made the world much smaller. Some of the most influential people in music, fashion, and style are coming out of Asia, whether it be K-pop artists or K-dramas.
If we want to continue to be relevant, we need to make sure we’re showing up in those places. We talk about being in the center of culture, and in many ways, Asian talent and Asian women represent that.
L’Officiel: What does it take for a brand to truly stay iconic?
Kenny Mitchell: You need to understand yourself and be true to yourself. You have to find out who you are and then be that on purpose, with authenticity, consistency, discipline, and rigor behind it.
We landed on the idea that Levi’s® is the outfitter of the world’s originals and those in pursuit of progress. That is a very unique and ownable point of view with receipt after receipt to back it up.
If myself and our team are doing our jobs well, we help a brand that has a rich history continue to be relevant over time.

Staying Iconic: Levi's®

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