With them since the beginning.
Notace is a Denver-based footwear brand drawing on Japanese craft philosophy. AKARI has been the brand's creative partner from its earliest days, leading the work from brand identity through product launch.
In the brand's formative phase, AKARI defined Notace's visual language in monochrome. Founder and athlete Cedric Scotto working with his hands. Shoes rendered in light and shadow. Notace's philosophy — strip away what isn't needed, keep only what is — lived in the negative space of the photographs.
Between fall 2025 and spring 2026, the brand launched three shoes in close succession: Yama T1 for trail, michi 1 for road, koto 1 for court. AKARI directed the campaign work, building three distinct visual languages for three distinct uses. If the monochrome brand work carried the philosophy, the color campaign work carried the movement. The same conviction, in two registers.
The Instagram campaign unfolded in layered phases: a symbolic opening, feature explainers, lifestyle scenes, use-case sequences. All copy in Japanese only, with katakana kept to a minimum. Precise phrases — foot-shaped toe-box, zero drop — were chosen over marketing language. The restraint of the writing mirrored the restraint of the product.
Following the michi 1 and koto 1 launches in March 2026, Notace's official Japanese Instagram nearly doubled its followers in two months. The work continues — keeping the brand's voice consistent while bringing each new product into the world.
