Japanese-born Kenzo Takada launched Kenzo in 1970 and quickly became recognized for his radical East-meets-West fusion of contrasting fabrics and bold ethnic patterns from all over the world. He launched men's wear in 1983 and a line of fragrances before selling the company to Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy in 1993. Takada presented his final show in 1999 before retiring from the fashion industry (he began working again in 2005 designing home furnishings). Included among his successors at the Kenzo fashion house are Antonio Marras, Humberto Leon and Carol Lim.

"It pleases me when people say I have influence. But I am influenced by the world that says I influence it. The world I live in is my influence."