Japan. Bags and Burberry
May 2026
Every now and then, an odd job comes in. I like odd jobs. They take me out of my comfort zone. I got a message from the team at Burberry. They were in the middle of a year long campaign, flying selected artists around the World to hand paint initials onto their very, very expensive bags. This particular job was for their stores in Japan. “Would I be interested?”
Hello!
As I was to be live hand painting in store, I needed an outfit. So they sent a selection of black jeans, polo shirts and shoes. Pretty much the cost equivalent of our yearly mortgage.
I flew out to Tokyo, business class, naturally and was met by a driver who whisked me to the first store in the city. There I met the awesome Sachiko, my host who was also my translator. English is not a widely spoken language in Japan. Sachiko was a saviour.
I checked into my hotel and went straight to one of the stores to work. It was an intricate process, using metal templates and a 2mm brush to paint onto the leather. The staff in store were so kind, even though communication was an issue. They made me feel so welcome.
I finished the first day at 8pm, walked back to the hotel and thought - Food. Just behind where I was staying was a street of restaurants, cafes and eateries. I walked up and down looking for a menu in English. All to no avail. Eventually after an hour an a half, I needed sustenance. Found a cafe, Sat by the counter, grabbed the menu and pointed. That became the only way to eat. And the food! Oh my, was delicious. Every place I went was incredible. Made to perfection.
My only issue was in Kyoto. I did the usual, sat by the counter, pointed at the gyozas and with my fingers said 5. 5 pieces of Gyoza. The waiter raised his eyebrows, muttered something that sounded like surprise and went off. Ten minutes later, my order arrived, and arrived, and arrived. I had mistakenly ordered 5 lots of trays of gyozas. Oh dear.
To my left were two business men, who commented, in Japanese, at my appetite. To my right were three cosplay girls, who pretty much did the same. Here’s the thing. The Japanese. Both groups pointed to my extra portions and basically said they would take and pay for, whilst laughing together. I was saved.
As a way of thanking the staff in the stores, at each one, I inked a personal initial of their name as a gift. The story doesn’t end there though. I was turning 50 that year and we had booked a once in a lifetime trip months earlier… to Japan. I had literally been back for 3 weeks before heading back to the airport and landing in Japan for a much more relaxed month. Equally as amazing.
