UK-Based Brand MKI is Taking a Cutting Edge Approach

With the warmer seasons drawing in and the great British summer coming to a close, we wanted to share with you guys a streetwear brand that should be on your radar if it isn’t already. MKI MIYUKI ZOKU, or MKI for short, is a men’s brand based in the UK, with edgy, cool, and sophisticated styles that will have you looking fun, fly, and fresh. As we begin to close out August and approach September, the brand is rolling out their late summer collections, with the latest release being their Poly Tracksuit capsule collection.

Available in Black and Seafoam, the collection includes a Track Jacket, Coach Jacket, Track Pants and Track Shorts. We spoke with the MKI crew to learn more about the collection.

ONE37pm: Let’s start at the beginning real quick. For those being introduced to MKI for the first time, can you give us a quick overview of the brand’s history?

MKI: MKI MIYUKI ZOKU began over a decade ago, originally as a multi-brand store stocking some of the best emerging streetwear and contemporary brands that you just couldn’t find in our hometown. From there, MKI itself has evolved and grown into an international brand, designing and developing accessible ready to wear menswear collections.

The name originated from a 1960’s street tribe the ‘Miyuki Zoku’, a group who brought American Ivy League style to Japan for the first time. We always try to nod to our roots and original concept. Of course, not all our collections have deep rooted connotations of ivy league style, but we try to look back where we can.

ONE37pm:  Can you tell us more about the Poly Tracksuit Collection?

MKI: The Poly Tracksuit collection in particular takes much loved 90’s shell suit silhouettes and adapts them to today’s contemporary streetwear aesthetic. It’s something that makes these collections timeless and end up becoming seamless wardrobe staples. The details in the garments—such as 2 way zippers, sewn in front seams, ribbed zip hems, and subtle embroidered logos—are the things that we weave into our MKI DNA.

We want to craft quality, simplistic and affordable streetwear pieces that encompass lots of attention to details.

ONE37pm: What went into the overall design/theme of this collection?

MKI: The Poly Tracksuit Capsule rounds out our SS22 Collections; we tend to release two major seasonal collections with numerous capsule collections throughout the year. The Poly capsule is the final one for spring/summer. With this in mind the poly collection had to entail some transitional elements with F/W around the corner.

This is why we used a rich midweight breathable poly fabric, paired with silhouettes that could cross over seasons. Other than your quintessential S/S and F/W styles we try to make the majority of our collections good for all seasons and fully interchangeable.

ONE37pm: We’re heading into the cooler fall and winter seasons! What’s on the horizon?

MKI: With the upcoming release of our FW22 Collection, we have some very exciting capsules set to release, those I’m afraid we have to keep tightly under wraps. But what I can say is that this year has the biggest drop of product we’ve ever had in one season. One thing I can let in on is that we are continually developing our heavyweight jersey program.

A constant pursuit of perfecting a super heavyweight jersey line. It’s a project we have been passionate about for well over two years. The response from this year's release; of 350gsm tees and 650 gsm sweats was incredible, so the ongoing releases will be one to keep an eye out for.

You can keep up with MKI and all of their future releases via their official website.