Dobuita Koba Studio is not simply a shop filled with finished sukajan. It is a working embroidery studio and gallery where Daisuke Yamagami creates one-off jackets while building new connections between the craft, the street and the next generation of makers.
What is Dobuita Koba Studio?
The studio opened on Dobuita Street in 2022. “Koba” suggests the warmth of a small local workshop, while “Studio” reflects a place for making, exhibiting, teaching and communicating the value of embroidery.
The white interior, visible machines and displayed works make the production process part of the visitor’s experience. It is closer to a workshop-gallery than a conventional shop packed with stock.
Daisuke Yamagami’s path to embroidery
Yamagami was born in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, in 1990 and moved to Yokosuka in 2015. A turning point came when he asked Ryoichi Matsuzaka of First Shokai to embroider one of his own illustrations on a sukajan.
He was attracted not only to the accuracy of the image but also to the visible decisions and human traces in the stitches. Yamagami later learned basic machine operation and lettering from Matsuzaka. In 2019 he also studied with Kiyomi Osawa, a recognised practitioner of hand-guided embroidery in Kiryu.
Read the related First Shokai guide.
Custom orders
Custom embroidery is generally arranged in advance. A customer selects a base jacket and discusses the design using a photograph, illustration or other reference. Depending on the project, communication may also take place by email or social media when an in-person visit is difficult.
A newcal feature published in April 2026 gave an example of jackets from ¥11,000 and extra-large back embroidery from ¥44,000, including tax. These are reported examples, not a permanent universal price list. Request a current quotation and schedule for your design.
More than a retail shop
Workshops and public demonstrations
The studio has held activities in which children bring drawings that are translated into embroidery. Outdoor demonstrations have also allowed people walking along Dobuita Street to see the craft being performed.
Local awards, music and visual identity
Koba Studio has contributed embroidery to commemorative jackets connected with local awards and events. Its tiger and eagle imagery has also appeared in visual material for Yokosuka Tomodachi Jazz, showing how sukajan motifs can function as a symbol of the city beyond clothing retail.
Training new makers
The studio began recruiting embroidery trainees in 2024. Later exhibitions brought together developing makers around the idea of creating “new classics” that might remain meaningful decades from now.
This work places the studio between shop, workshop, cultural venue and training space. That wider role is the main reason the word “Studio” matters.
Shop information
| Shop | Dobuita Koba Studio / ドブ板コーバスタジオ |
|---|---|
| Address | 2-1 Honcho, Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan |
| Phone | 046-890-6041 (from outside Japan: +81-46-890-6041) |
| Listed hours | 11:00–18:00 |
| Listed closing day | Wednesday |
| Access | About 7 minutes from Keikyu Yokosuka-Chuo Station |
| Official links | Website / Instagram |
| Map | Open in Google Maps |
The listed information was checked in October–November 2026. Contact the studio before visiting, especially if you want to discuss an order. English-language service is not guaranteed.