Comme des Garcons

Welcome to 2nd Culture, Amsterdam's home for curated Comme des Garçons. Our handpicked selection spans the brand's most recognisable pieces, from the peeping PLAY heart to rare Converse and Nike collaborations, all sourced from a house that has spent over five decades refusing to make fashion the easy way. Every piece we carry earns its place through the same idea Rei Kawakubo built the brand on: clothing that makes you think, not just clothing that fits.
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From Tokyo to Paris: The Rei Kawakubo Story

Rei Kawakubo founded Comme des Garçons in Tokyo in 1969, taking the name from a Françoise Hardy lyric that translates to "like the boys." Her Paris debut in 1981 shocked critics with raw hems and deliberate imperfections, and it's still treated as the moment Japanese avant-garde fashion arrived on the world stage. Kawakubo remains creative director today, having grown the house into a full ecosystem of sub-labels, including COMME des GARÇONS HOMME PLUS, and nurtured designers such as Junya Watanabe into names of their own.

The PLAY Heart: How a Rejected Sketch Became an Icon

Every Comme des Garçons PLAY piece carries the same mark: a small red heart with two watchful eyes, drawn by Polish artist Filip Pagowski and adopted in 2002 as the face of the brand's most accessible line. In 2009, PLAY partnered with Converse to put that heart on the Chuck Taylor All Star, a collaboration that's run every season since and expanded to the Chuck 70. It remains one of the most recognisable sneaker collaborations around, no explanation needed.

Nike, Supreme and the Sneaker Collaborations Worth Chasing

Comme des Garçons treats sneakers as another canvas for reinvention. Under the HOMME PLUS line, its Nike collaborations strip the Air Max 95 and Air Force 1 down to raw foam and reassembled panelling, while earlier Supreme collaborations brought that same energy to the Air Force 1 in tightly limited runs through Dover Street Market, Kawakubo's own multi-brand retail concept.

If Comme des Garçons is your gateway into collaboration culture, our Nike collection and Supreme collection are natural next stops, alongside the Converse pieces in our own curated rotation.

Comme des Garçons BLACK

Launched in 2008 as an affordable, all-black diffusion line, Comme des Garçons BLACK has grown into a permanent fixture of the CDG lineup rather than a passing offshoot. Where the mainline experiments with silhouette and deconstruction, BLACK keeps the focus tight: minimalist, gender-neutral pieces built almost entirely around black, white and grey. The line has extended into sneakers too, including recent Comme des Garçons BLACK x Nike Air Force 1 releases that carry the same stripped-back, monochrome approach onto the shoe.

Our Curated Comme des Garçons Selection

We don't stock everything with a CDG label on it. Every piece is handpicked for authenticity, condition and story, whether that's a mainline HOMME PLUS piece or a PLAY basic.

  • Curated, not mass-collected: we select pieces that represent the range at its best, from PLAY staples to rarer mainline and collaboration pieces.
  • Authenticity you can trust: every item passes our authenticity check before it reaches the rail.
  • Community expertise: our team can talk you through a specific season, sub-label or collaboration, not just the price tag.

How to Style Comme des Garçons

A PLAY heart tee under an oversized jacket brings that quiet, in-the-know signal to an otherwise simple outfit. For something bolder, layer a deconstructed HOMME PLUS piece over straight-leg trousers and let the raw seams and asymmetry do the talking. Finish with a pair of heart-logo Converse or a CDG Air Force 1 and you have a look that pulls from streetwear and high fashion in equal measure, exactly the kind of crossover Comme des Garçons has spent decades perfecting.

Comme des Garçons Sizing

Comme des Garçons apparel, particularly the mainline and HOMME PLUS ranges, tends to run true to Japanese sizing, which sits slightly smaller and more cropped than typical European fits. PLAY basics are closer to standard streetwear sizing. Comme des Garçons x Converse sneakers are built on the classic Chuck Taylor last and generally run a touch large, so most people find it worth checking a specific colourway before choosing a size.

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

What does the name Comme des Garçons mean?

It's French for "like the boys," inspired by a 1962 Françoise Hardy song. Rei Kawakubo chose it to reflect her early interest in androgynous, non-conforming design.
Who founded Comme des Garçons?

Rei Kawakubo founded the label in Tokyo in 1969 and has remained its creative director ever since, without any formal training in fashion design.
What is Comme des Garçons PLAY?

PLAY is the brand's most accessible sub-label, launched in 2002 and known for its red heart-and-eyes logo designed by Filip Pagowski, most famously seen on the Converse Chuck Taylor collaboration.
Is Comme des Garçons streetwear or high fashion?

Both. The mainline sits firmly in conceptual, avant-garde fashion, while PLAY and the Nike, Converse and Supreme collaborations have made the brand a genuine streetwear fixture too.
Where can I buy Comme des Garçons in Amsterdam?

At 2nd Culture. We curate and authenticate a rotating selection of Comme des Garçons, from PLAY basics to rarer collaboration pieces, in our Amsterdam store and online.

Come by 2nd Culture in Amsterdam and see our current Comme des Garçons selection in person, or browse the collection online and let our team walk you through what just came in.