Seiya Nakamura 2.24 will open pop-ups for Paloma Wool and The Frankie Shop in Shanghai from October, marking the company's shift from sales and PR representation toward direct retail development in China. The move extends a model the Tokyo-based firm has already scaled in Japan, where it manages distribution to more than 1,600 stores and holds more than 10 retail projects in the pipeline for 2027.

The Shanghai operation is not new. The company established an office and showroom there in 2019, now serving more than 30 accounts including Courrèges, Isabel Marant, Jean Paul Gaultier, Amomento and Gimaguas, plus Chinese brands Shushu/tong and Feng Chen Wang for overseas sales. What changes from October is the company's role: it moves from placing brands with wholesale partners to operating physical retail itself.

Where will the pop-ups land?

Paloma Wool will open within Shanghai's historic former French concession, while The Frankie Shop will take space at Réel, the upscale mall near Jing'an Temple. Both are test cases. Nakamura said the company has worked in China through brand activations before, but the pop-ups give it a direct opportunity to evaluate what retail format works for each brand in the market.

That is the core of his pitch to brand partners: adaptation, not replication.

"We don't want to be just a copy-and-paste model that other companies have been doing. We really want to understand the purpose of the brand, to really tailor the services in each project that we are actually working on," Nakamura said during an interview in Paris.

How does the model translate from Japan?

In Japan, 2.24 has built a multibrand retail strategy on relationships with major retailers and shopping centers, using that leverage to negotiate better terms and locations for its brands. China, Nakamura acknowledged, is not simply a larger version of Japan.

The company's positioning sits deliberately between categories. "We are not, let's say, a typical distributor. We are not typical sales agents. We are not a typical PR company, and we are not just a retail developer. For me, 2.24 is a platform," he said.

The infrastructure behind that platform is substantial: three global offices, a 27,000-square-foot Paris showroom, and roughly 80 brands and clients to date, with engagement levels varying by brand — some take PR, others consulting, others full sales support. Founded 12 years ago as a wholesale sales business, the company now spans distribution for Jacquemus, Paloma Wool, Satisfy and Toteme, plus stores, pop-ups and an event and exhibition space in Japan.

Can experience-led retail scale in China?

Nakamura's argument for physical retail in a mature market like China rests on purpose and community rather than location alone. "Every brand, every store, if they don't have a purpose, then they're gone," he said, adding that customers want engagement, not just product.

The proof of concept the company points to is T.T. Taiga Takahashi, the vintage-inspired label founded by a Central Saint Martins-trained designer who passed away in 2022. Nakamura advised the designer before the pandemic to focus on direct customer relationships: "I told him, 'Let's do retail. You don't need to have maybe 200 people, 1,000 people, 1 million people. Let's just talk to 20 people every day.'"

The partnership produced a Kyoto retail concept combining a store with a tea house. Nakamura said the tea house is fully booked months in advance and the space has become a destination. In 2027, the brand will bring the tea house concept to Tokyo with a full fashion and lifestyle range — a template for the experience-led retail 2.24 intends to develop in China.

On market presence, Nakamura is categorical: information alone does not replace being on the ground. For the past few years, the company has hosted a cocktail reception at Mi Shang, the restaurant within Prada Rong Zhai, during Shanghai Fashion Week to maintain relationships with local heavyweights and global visitors. He sees opportunity on both sides of the market — international labels entering China and Chinese designers scaling abroad, citing the country's supply chain and internationally experienced designers.

Nakamura frames the next phase as yielding results from 12 years of groundwork, giving brands the localized knowledge and attention needed to grow in China.