Finding "Little Moments of Happiness" through Self-Pleasure: Behind the Development of the iroha+ YORU Sumire Produced by Kiko Mizuhara

The iroha+ YORU Sumire, recently released, is a collaboration between iroha and Kiko Mizuhara, who has been an iroha Ambassador since 2023.

The names of the iroha+ YORU Sumire was inspired by Japanese flowers. The items incorporate the vibrant colors of the sumire flower (a type of violet).

Profile Kiko Mizuhara

Born on October 15, 1990, in Dallas, Texas, U.S.A., Kiko Mizuhara was raised in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. She began modeling in 2003 and made her film debut in 2010 in the movie "Norwegian Wood." In 2017, she launched her own brand called OK. In 2021, she was involved in planning, acting, and supervising her first program with Amazon Prime Video, "Kiko Kikaku." She is actively working as an actress, model, and designer.

OK (Office Kiko) website: https://officekiko.com/

Kiko Kikaku website: https://kikokikaku.jp/

Instagram: @i_am_kiko

Contents

• Developed in collaboration with Kiko Mizuhara, the iroha+ YORU
• What Do You Think About Purple? A Rare Color for iroha Products
• The Product Name - Japanese for Violets, Meaning "Little Moments of Happiness"
• Watch the iroha+ YORU Sumire Development Meeting (Video)
• About the Kiko Mizuhara × iroha Collaborative item, iroha+ YORU Sumire

Developed in collaboration with Kiko Mizuhara, the iroha+ YORU

For this collaborative project, we worked with Kiko in development of the iroha+ YORU, an item that has been talked about in previous development discussions.

This is an item that we were especially keen to develop with Kiko because of her great love of whales. For this collaboration, the development meeting began with the question, "If we were to develop this together with Kiko, what color iroha+ YORU should we make?"

Here's a look at the development meeting!

What Do You Think About Purple? A Rare Color for iroha Products

Let's start by deciding on the color of this new YORU. We carefully examined various color samples and prototypes that were potential candidates.

The original iroha+ YORU is available in black and also in Nadeshiko color.

YORU prototypes in various colors presented during the development stage.

"There are surprisingly few iroha products in purple! So would purple be okay?" - Kiko

By checking the colors that Kiko was interested and then seeing how they would look on the YORU, everyone eventually decided on a purple hue that many of the iroha staff found cute. So it looked like the main color of the Product Body was decided.

While looking at an image combining a color they liked and the YORU, Kiko and an iroha staff member commented, "This color is cute, too."

The Product Name - Japanese for Violets, Meaning "Little Moments of Happiness"

Later, we also had a meeting to decide on the product name of YORU.

Other collaboration products, the iroha mai and the iroha petit, were developed starting from the concept, motif, and shape. The product names were inspired by Kiko's love of the sea.

As the YORU is a whale-motif item that has already been released, we decided to add new color names.

"I thought "Aofuji" (blue wisteria) that was chosen at the last meeting (listed on the color sample) was beautiful, but I was looking for other good color names." - iroha staff

iroha staff picked the following as candidates for color names: Among them, what interested Kiko was...

• Fujimurasaki (wisteria purple)
• Sumire (violet)
• Hamanadeshiko (dianthus japonicus soft pink)
• Kikyo (bellflower purple)
• Rindo (gentian deep blue)

"Sumire! The flower (violet) means 'little moments of happiness,' which is very nice! The sound of the word 'sumire' is also cute. Other flower names like 'Kikyo' (bellflower) are also beautiful, and so it was difficult to choose, but sumire attracted me because of its message." - Kiko

"The message of finding small joys in everyday life is good." - iroha staff)

"The whale motif of the YORU conveys the sense that 'little moments of happiness are brought to you.' " - Kiko

During the development meetings for the iroha mai RURI, Kiko mentioned how she was inspired by the sea and whales and said, "whales are a symbol of happiness." This project also has strong connections to the other collaborations, complementing them wonderfully. So, the collaboration item has been decided: the iroha+ YORU Sumire! 

Thus, the product name iroha+ YORU Sumire was chosen.

We hope that the iroha+ YORU Sumire will bring happiness to everyone!
The jointly developed product, the iroha stick Hamanasu, named after a traditional Japanese rose, will be released at the same time in Japan. Both collaborations have names that incorporate the names of flowers.

As a collaboration item, iroha stick Hamanasu will be released at the same time as the iroha+ YORU Sumire in Japan. Read more about the development meeting for the iroha stick Hamanasu here.

Watch the Development Meeting Video!

You can also watch the video below to see the development meeting for the iroha+ YORU Sumire below.

About the Kiko Mizuhara × iroha Collaborative item, iroha+ YORU Sumire

Developed in collaboration with Kiko Mizuhara, the iroha+ YORU Sumire.

This addition to the iroha lineup is inspired by the sea, a theme it has in common with other Kiko Mizuhara collaboration items.

This violet-colored whale brings "little moments of happiness." Please enjoy the iroha+ YORU Sumire.