Jun Takahashi is inextricable from UNDERCOVER, his 35-year-old-or-so clothing brand, because UNDERCOVER is inextricable from Jun Takahashi. The motifs that inform his ingenious womenswear collections are pulled from his own backstory as a young Harajuku rebel with big-city dreams.

A great deal of what gets UNDERCOVER going aligns quite neatly with Bunney, the punkish British jewelry label founded in 2009. Both makers operate in spaces framed by by spiritual forebears like Vivienne Westwood and COMME des GARÇONS founder Rei Kawakubo — sensing a kindred spirit, Kawakubo took a young Takahashi under her wing — and recontextualize anti-establishmentarian motifs with careful craft. The two labels have partnered before but right now is exactly the right moment for their reunion.

UNDERCOVER's Fall/Winter 2025 collection, "But Beautiful II" reiterates upon one of the greatest presentations Takahashi ever dreamed up. In it, the designer's grunge inclinations went baroque, drab wool peasant-core shredded by aggro seams and sweeping explosions of texture framed by thick stitches like Frankenstein's monster.

Pinned to the chests of several old-timey coats, with extraneous buttons mushrooming all around, were these little badges akin to those you'd get from a band's merch table. Those doodads were UNDERCOVER originals meant to reflect Takahashi's musical side but, for the "But Beautiful II" redux, UNDERCOVER brought in Bunney to improve upon perfection.

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"I think both BUNNEY and UNDERCOVER return to badges for similar reasons," says Andrew Bunney. "Badges are about communication and conveying a message. Because these tokens carry meaning, from our side, we aim to celebrate that value and make them in the most special way possible. These particular badges are deceptively simple."

Indeed, Bunney's newest UNDERCOVER badges are unpretentious little charms in gold and silver, updating Bunney's classic badge styling with debossed UNDERCOVER logos. Deceptively simple indeed, because it ain't so simple to make this little thing perfect. But getting little things perfect is a specialty of both labels. The fact that you have to look closely to observe the little logos is part of the point— this is a prize for the wearer above all else.

"We first collaborated with UNDERCOVER some years ago, producing badges for the launch of the now very collectible 'Selected Works: The Badge' newspaper," Bunney recalls. "Since then, UNDERCOVER have used badges in other shows. It’s always interesting to see their slant and what they will come back with."

Does Bunney mind its badges being styled alongside vintage miliary pins and pennants branded with "Loser," as they were in the FW25 runway show?

"We don't have a say, but absolutely understand and trust the UNDERCOVER aesthetic," Bunney says. "Their shows are often some of the most beautiful so it is always nice to see the products used and worn."

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