Tokyu Hands in Japan is now shortened to Hands

New shop-front signage at Hands, Shibuya, Tokyo

The famed Tokyu Hands, after 47 years, has truncated its already short name by deleting the proper noun in it. In stores across Japan, it is now known simply as Hands. And the five-letter name comes with a new Helvetic-style typeface, while retaining the familiar green of the original. That ‘Tokyu’ is dropped is inevitable. It referred to the brand’s former parent company, the Tokyu Group. Last March, the chain store was acquired by Cainz Corporation, one of Japan’s biggest operator of home centres. Apart from the name change, the pair of closed hands with the index finger pointing outwards that formed a sort of parenthesis for the logotype was also dropped (overseas, the pair of hands are not always used in their branding). The mononym is now crowned with a rope-like curlicue that was based on the kanji character for hand (手).

Tokyu Hands was founded in 1976 as a DIY store to cater to the rapid rise of the creative/hobbyist consumer. It has become more than that, offering merchandise in the category of lifestyle needs. The familiar logo was designed by the company’s ‘brand lifestyle producer’ Yasuhiro Hamano, and has been an irresistible lure for tourists, especially at Takashimaya in Shinjuku (you can spot more than a mile away) and their standalone in Shibuya. The new look of the name was conceived by the Tokyo-Milan agency Nendo. They give it a modern makeover, while not alienating those who love the brand’s colour identity by keeping the “comforting” green. It is not yet known if the branding update has confused those unaware of the name change, or if it has been become even more persuasive in driving shopper traffic.

At the Orchard Central flagship, Tokyu Hands retains it old name

While it was announced in Tokyo that the new name and logo would be used in Tokyu Hands overseas stores (primarily Singapore, Malaysia, and Taiwan—with 15 stores), no rollout dates were announced. When we visited the retailer’s Orchard Road flagship last weekend, the signage on the shop front was still the recognisable Tokyu Hands and the place where the new logo would have been continued to say Creative Life Store. Some staffers we spoke to were unaware of the name change and were unable to say when the still-in-use moniker would be taken down. Cainz Corporation, probably still fine-tuning the branding of Hands back home, may not be in great haste to effect the change if familiarity continues to sever the market here well.

In Japan, Tokyu Hands had enjoyed the reputation as the best DIY department store. Its multi-level emporiums, with many stairs to add to the confusion of navigating the departments, offer a staggering range of supplies that appeal to hobbyists of different skill levels. If you do not craft, there are impressive areas that cater to beauty, home decorating, indoor gardening, and even to those who just want to buy a sturdy bag (that department in the Shibuya store is not short of impressive). The stores in Singapore are considerably smaller and are not catered to hobbyists and crafters. As with the Japanese department store Isetan, a name identical to the one used in Japan does not mean the store is physically the same, least of all the merchandise. Hopefully, Hands, if it is finally adopted here, will be more in line with its Japanese original.

Photos (top): Jiro Shiratori and (bottom) Chin Both Kay