Bonsai Bicycle Works
Following a circuit around the reclaimed island of Obdaiba, passing the Gundam statue and witnessing familiar parts of the city for the first time on two wheels, Bonsai Cycle Works was the last stop on my first ride in Tokyo. An unexpected experience hidden away in a leafy backstreet of Shibuya, it was a bike shop but rather than the smell of grease and tires the aroma of coffee and freshly baked muffins completely threw me as we entered.
The store was started by Hideo Yoshida in 2011 after seven years at a large, well established Tokyo bike shop which provided him with the training and experience needed to follow his own path. Bonsai is very different, with more the feeling of a bespoke tailors where you can build a relationship together over time, getting a very individual service, which in many ways makes sense since he originally studied at the famous Bunka Fashion College in Shinjuku. The interior combines traditional elements with carefully selected industrial fittings, successfully merging the worlds of the tailor and bicycle workshop. Although not directly working in fashion now, subtle indications like the mannequins used for displaying clothes and even his own sartorial style show signs that he still has a love for fashion. Through Bonsai Astronautics, their own team and brand, you can see the influences come through in the designs they create, heavily influenced by the famous Tailor Caid in Shibuya of whom he’s a regular customer.
The interior combines traditional elements with carefully selected industrial fittings, successfully merging the worlds of the tailor and bicycle workshop
To some extent this is also true of many of the bikes he builds which are often customised to be completely unique to the owner, not only with rare parts but also in the colour schemes which are often hand detailed to match, customers can order hand made frames from builders like Independent Fabrication and Speedvagen to their own colour and size specifications. Yoshida’s personal bikes take this detailing to a new level, something akin to the yellow jersey rider in the Tour de France, where every part, including the colours on the helmet and sunglasses are painstakingly coordinated.
The noticeable difference from other cycle stores upon entering is immediately the café which was always part of Yoshida’s vision. There are many cafés for cyclists, but very few where you have the opportunity to enjoy high quality coffee from an Italian espresso machine while your bike is being serviced. It’s run by Natsuki, Yoshida san’s wife — also a committed rider and professional barista responsible for the amazing muffins and other good things freshly baked on the premises. The café also acts as a base for their cycling team members and something of a salon atmosphere for frequent customers, the majority of whom are local or from within Tokyo — although there are some who visit from outside the city or even other countries, generally cyclists with a more visual sense who share a similar outlook to Yoshida.
Like many cycle shop owners I’ve met, Yoshida is also a serious rider himself, beginning in his early 20’s while he was a messenger in Tokyo, he trains for road and cyclocross races throughout the year, his belief is that if he sells bikes made for racing, he should be racing himself — and he’s fast, the Bonsai team came second in this years Rapha Gentleman’s race in Kyoto which is nothing to be sniffed at.
One of the things that intrigued me early on was Yoshida-san’s unique personal blog that combines his thoughts with images and a kind of poetic musing which bring together cycling, art and the everyday which he explains are just his ideas spilling out, he doesn’t think too much about them or their style, he lets it all come out naturally. And the name? Rather than the familiar Japanese term used to describe the art of miniature potted trees (which most people would think), it’s actually a combination of the French for good (Bon), and the Japanese word for rhinoceros (Sai), which comes from their iconic mascot, the good rhino that you can see in the store, on their cap designs, coffee cups and anything else they produce.
This story first appeared on NowhereFast.cc
Bonsai Cycle Works site.
