Founded in 1990 by Jun Takahashi, Under Cover emerged as Japan’s punk-infused answer to Antwerp's Second Wave. Born in Kiryu, Gunma-Ken in 1969, Takahashi trained at Tokyo’s Bunka Fashion College. He launched the label while still a student and simultaneously co-founded the iconic shop Nowhere with Tomoaki “Nigo” Nagao.

Under Cover quickly gained recognition for streetwise yet darkly eclectic collections, blending gothic, punk, and deconstructivist influences. Takahashi’s Paris shows, beginning in 2002, cemented his global reputation, with garments that fuse anarchic energy, layering, and bold graphic treatments into a striking, refined vision. Known for making the “strange but beautiful,” Undercover remains one of fashion’s most innovative and provocative voices.