Takada Kenzo was one of seven children and developed an interest in fashion through reading the magazines of his sisters.

Born in Himeiji City, Hyogo Prefecture, he quit Kobe University to try to become one of the first male students at Tokyo's Bunka Fashion College (Bunkafukuso Gakuin). After some six months, he was finally accepted to the prestigious college and the kind of determination that got him there was to serve him well in the future.

In 1964, Takada moved to Paris and started at the very bottom of the fashion industry ladder. After making enough contacts, he worked as a freelance designer and opened his first boutique 'Jungle Jap' in 1970.

His first men's collection was launched in 1983. In 1988, his women's perfume line began with Kenzo de Kenzo, Parfum d'été, Le monde est beau and L'eau par Kenzo. Kenzo pour Homme was his first men's perfume (1991).

Always very selective of his fabric, Takada in recent years has moved into the design of furniture coverings and household items.

Since 1993 the brand Kenzo is owned by the French luxury goods company LVMH.
In September 1999, he announced that he was handing over the reins of his fashion house to his assistants. In 2005, he reappeared as a decoration designer presenting “Gokan Kobo” (”workshop of the five senses”), a brand of tableware, home objects and furniture.