ABOUT US
Built By Two People Obsessed With Martial Arts, Design & Better Merch
Kakuto Studios is a Melbourne-based creative studio producing Japanese-inspired artwork licensing and merch systems for martial arts clubs, combat sports brands, and modern apparel projects.
Because martial arts merch deserves better than another generic logo tee.
The Pandemic Accident That Became A Brand
Kakuto started back in 2020 during Melbourne’s lockdown era.
Like a lot of people at the time, we had too much time inside and too many ideas floating around that never seemed to go anywhere. We’d always talked about how cool it would be to create a martial arts brand built around Japanese-inspired artwork and combat sports culture — eventually we got sick of talking about it and just started.
At the time, we were both working corporate jobs: Jaz in marketing across health insurance and banking, and Alex in workplace consulting and HR.
Since then, life has gotten a little fuller. We’re now parents of two young children — a daughter who is two, nearly three, and a son who has recently turned one — so Kakuto has grown in between family life, late nights, nap windows, and the general chaos of trying to build something meaningful while also raising tiny humans.
What started as a small side project creating apparel for the martial arts community slowly evolved into something much bigger: a full creative system combining artwork, apparel, branding, production, and merch launches.
About Alex
Alex is the artist behind Kakuto Studios.
Drawing has always come naturally to him — particularly large-scale illustration and mural-style work — but Kakuto became the catalyst for refining a style that blended Japanese visual influence, combat sports culture, and modern streetwear direction into something uniquely our own.
Over the years, Alex also immersed himself in apparel production and garment decoration, learning the realities of print processes, file preparation, and how artwork actually translates onto clothing in the real world.
That combination of illustration, production knowledge, and apparel understanding became one of the foundations of Kakuto Studios.
Outside the studio, Alex has a long background in sport and training culture, including golf, taekwondo, calisthenics, bodybuilding, Olympic weightlifting and BJJ.
That background heavily influences the direction of the artwork and the type of apparel we create — pieces designed to feel authentic to modern gym culture, not generic fitness merchandise.
About Jaz
Jaz handles the marketing, operations, systems, and strategic direction behind Kakuto.
After years working in corporate marketing roles across health insurance and banking, transitioning into building a small creative business from scratch was a very different challenge — but one we quickly became obsessed with solving.
A big part of Kakuto’s direction comes from combining creative design, operational structure, merchandising strategy, and brand positioning into a system that feels approachable and easy for clubs to actually use.
Outside the business, Jaz has spent years around training culture through CrossFit, Olympic weightlifting, BJJ, and strength training.
That firsthand experience inside gym environments shaped a lot of the frustrations that ultimately led to Kakuto: generic merch, poor branding, and apparel that never really reflected the culture of the clubs wearing it.
What Kakuto Studios Has Become
Kakuto Studios originally began as an apparel brand (Kakuto Culture).
Over time, we realised the real value wasn’t just selling clothing — it was the artwork, the branding direction, and the merch systems surrounding it.
Today, Kakuto Studios focuses on Japanese-inspired artwork licensing, apparel-ready design systems, and merch launch support for martial arts clubs and modern combat sports brands.
Rather than operating like a traditional print shop or freelance design studio, the goal is to create structured, merch-ready artwork systems that help clubs launch apparel that actually feels wearable, modern, and culturally aligned to the communities they represent.
Who We Create For
Kakuto Studios primarily creates for BJJ academies, MMA gyms, judo clubs, functional fitness brands, and modern combat sports apparel projects.
The work sits somewhere between martial arts culture, Japanese visual influence, and contemporary streetwear.
Some projects are built for gyms wanting better member merch. Others are designed for apparel brands, events, or limited releases.
At the centre of all of it is the same idea: create artwork and apparel people genuinely want to wear outside the gym.
Artwork First. Merch Second.
Most gym merchandise starts with a logo, a supplier catalogue, and a rushed design process.
Kakuto approaches things differently.
The artwork comes first.
Every piece is designed with apparel placement, garment flow, print production, and modern streetwear styling in mind from the beginning.
The result is merch that feels intentional — not like an afterthought.
Where We’re Taking Kakuto
Kakuto Studios is continuing to evolve into a larger creative ecosystem built around artwork licensing, apparel systems, production support, and modern martial arts branding.
The long-term goal is simple: help martial arts clubs and combat sports brands launch merch that feels culturally authentic, visually premium, and professionally structured.
And honestly? Draw cool sh*t we’d actually wear ourselves.
Ready To Build Better Merch?
Explore premium Japanese-inspired artwork licensing and merch systems built for modern martial arts brands.