Ace pilots a harness-fitting service for a made-in-Japan backpack at Takashimaya Shinjuku
Ace, the Tokyo bag maker, is piloting a measured harness-fitting service for a ¥62,700 made-in-Japan backpack at Takashimaya Shinjuku, with other department stores to follow — a Japanese manufacturer testing a service-led pitch before rolling it out further.
Ace Co., Ltd., the Tokyo bag maker, is running a backpack-fitting event at Takashimaya Shinjuku's sixth-floor men's bag section from Wednesday 7 October to Tuesday 13 October, built around a business backpack sold in four distinct shoulder-harness builds, the company said in a release.
The event, called Harness Fit Lab, pairs the Gadgetable DP2 4U — a ¥62,700, made-in-Japan backpack Ace says is hand-sewn by skilled domestic craftsmen — with a "harness" sizing system developed from measurements of male test subjects' back length and shoulder thickness, citing a 2024 academic paper on the subject. The four harness types are named S (Slender), P (Power), B (Balance) and M (Max). On 10–12 October, a fitter will be on hand with a dedicated measuring device to recommend a harness type in person; store staff offer general fitting advice across the full week, Ace said.
Ace said other department stores will host the same event in sequence, without naming them yet.
A measured, in-store fitting service for a single backpack model is a small bet, but it is a bet on service, not price or design, to differentiate a commuter bag in a crowded category — and doing it first at Takashimaya Shinjuku, with a named rollout to more stores to follow, reads as a pilot Ace is testing before deciding how far to take the format.
What to watch is whether the fitting mechanics justify expanding Harness Fit Lab beyond this one product, or whether it stays a one-SKU promotional event.