For me traveling to Japan is about finding new input to the highly personal business of running GOODS. Everything about GOODS is build on personal experiences and travel is a big part of it.

I have been and am travelling to the major capitals of Europe several times a year, and have been for a very long time, but Japan is very different and their cities are unlike any cities we have in Europe and that's why I try to go there as often as possible.

I try to go out there with as little an agenda as possible in order to take in what the Japanese do so well and to have the time to reflect on my experiences while travelling.

Everything can inspire you when you are in Japan. And I really mean that, but one of the things which fascinates me so much, is the pride and honor that is put into every craft and profession. Take the 80-something year old Teppanyaki lady making Kobe Teppanyaki for us with her son in Shibuya. That's a photo that - for me - sums up this notion of striving for perfection and that is something that inspires me greatly and has a profound impact on me.

Contrasts like in clothing is what makes some things particularly interesting. Japan embodies the contrast of century old traditions and crafts (found in Kyoto and many other smaller cities) but also modernity, technology (found in a larger scale in Tokyo) The clash of east and west is poignant and obvious here, and so where else do you find a Natural wine shop/restaurant on the second floor of an ordinary residential area of Asakusabashi with mostly European wines and a French inspired kitchen - which is then infused with that specific Japanese touch? Plus, in order to get to the restaurant you have to pass through a great menswear store and by a just as amazing vintage store on the first floor before arriving at your point of dining. Incredible and incredibly inspiring.

In these ways and many others, Japan is a polished surface with a diverse underground and that - coupled with a sincere dedication to craft and delivering excellence in all forms - is really inspiring to what we want the experience of GOODS to be.

A TRIP TO JAPAN BY GOODS COPENHAGEN