Liza Dunning's Camera Roll: Tokyo's Endless Inspiration

About this article:
What's in my Camera Roll?  is a window into a marketing leader's personal world.   They  open  up their camera roll and share recent photos with the stories behind them. 

Like seemingly half the U.S. population on Instagram, I, too, was fortunate enough to take a trip to Tokyo this year.

For me, it felt long overdue. Because the last time I was meant to travel there, it was February 2020. At the time, I was a creative lead at Airbnb, and we were deep in campaign preparation for a new Experiences category launch: Nightlife! We would be filming there with a tour host who dubbed himself the “Shibuya Street Cat” — a charismatic 60-something local who led groups through Drunkard’s Alley (Nonbei Yokocho) to the best hole-in-the-wall dive bars, and would stay out with you until well past 2 am, should you be into that sort of all-nighter experience.

You can guess what happened next. Just weeks later, the world shut down. Travel as we knew it was postponed indefinitely, and the last category that Airbnb had any business launching was one centered around groups of strangers gathering in small, crowded bars.

So my intro to Tokyo would have to wait.

I didn’t expect it to take six years, but the good news is that, not only did I finally make it — for a long-planned celebration of my mom’s 70th and my brother’s 40th! But then the universe gave me a little bonus treat of a work trip to Tokyo a few months later. Albeit, the second trip took place during a typhoon. But still! Tokyo TWICE! I’ll take it.

Both times, I left feeling deeply obsessed and filled to the brim with creative inspiration from just few days each in this overwhelming city.

Anthony Bourdain put it best (didn’t he always?) when he called Tokyo “deliciously unknowable,” a dense layer cake of the strange, the wonderful, and the awful. Mesmerizing. Intimidating. Disorienting. And yes, beautiful.

I feel like I got a small taste of every layer.

For the purposes of narrowing down a camera roll of 3,000 Tokyo photos, I’m sticking to one theme: the creative playfulness I experienced in Tokyo retail.

Here’s what stuck with me.

A bold welcome in Ginza

Typhoon vibes in Tokyo. (Ginza)

An all-red Tiger Cafe in Onitsuka is a whole (bold) vibe. (Ginza)

A scent story, one stick at a time

If you’re into the sensory experience of buying incense, two shops are worth seeking out. One isAPFR. The other is Lisn, a tiny jewel box of a store where you can build a mix-and-match pack stick by stick, scent story by scent story. (Omotesando)

A second life for old sneakers

A quick moment for this DIY inspo at K5 hotel: think twice before tossing your old sneakers! They could make for an uber-hip succulent planter. (Kabutocho)

Art meets streetwear

This was just one of the agriculturally inspired art installations inside Korean streetwear brand ADERERROR's store. I love her. (Omotesando)

Down the rabbit hole

For a trippy Alice-in-Wonderland-esque experience, head to the very colorful Korean brand store, Wiggle Wiggle. The first floor is sensory overload. If you can handle it, climb to the third floor for a surreal installation made for social content: an adult-sized dollhouse bedroom with psychedelic walls and floors. No drugs necessary. (Harajuku)

A very good boy at Tamburins

Tamburins is also technically a Korean fragrance brand from the Gentle Monster family (seems like I’ll need to do another one of these for Seoul?!), but I can’t not share this animatronic dachshund in a spacesuit. Because… amazing. He’s basically the entire store experience. Good boy. (Daikanyama)

Eye candy in Omotesando

I’m honestly not even sure what this store is. A plushy pop-up shop? Either way, it caught my eye, and that’s what we’re here for, right? Eye candy. (Omotesando)

One more reason to look up

At the end of September, the main square in the Shimokitazawa neighborhood hung a giant 3D installation by UK artist Luke Jerram celebrating the harvest moon as part of its Moon Art Night. 90 local businesses participate with moon-themed menus and experiences around the area. (The neighborhood is generally worth exploring for thrift, vintage, Japanese curry, and a much less hectic — uber hip — version of Tokyo.) The installation was even more dramatic this night — bouncing around in those typhoon winds.

Tokyo is one infinite, sprawling reason to fill your camera roll into embarrassing excess of creative inspiration. In a world of sameness, it feels like an absolute treasure trove (okay, layer cake) of excitement. Well worth the six years of anticipation for me.

’Til next time, Tokyo!