Sander Lak returns to the runway this June, launching his new label Sanderlak during Paris Men’s Fashion Week. Known for his work at Sies Marjan, Lak now steps into a new phase with a brand that reflects his personal trajectory and international background. The debut collection will take place through private appointments in Paris, offering an intimate introduction to a project that he’s built around place, movement, and identity.
Sanderlak introduces a focused design approach: each collection will anchor itself in a specific location. That place will influence every aspect of the work, from the color palette and fabric choices to mood and silhouette. Lak treats location not as a backdrop but as a structural element, using it to ask questions about belonging, transience, and what it means to feel at home. Though the brand builds from menswear traditions, it doesn’t set limits on who can wear it.
Lak brings a broad, globally-informed perspective to Sanderlak. Born in Brunei, he grew up in Malaysia, Gabon, Scotland, and the Netherlands, absorbing a range of cultural experiences early on. He later studied fashion at ArtEZ in Arnhem, followed by a Master’s degree in menswear at Central Saint Martins in London, graduating in 2008. Each of those places continues to inform how he approaches design, not through literal references but through accumulated impressions of climate, people, and texture.
After graduating, Lak moved through some of the industry’s most respected houses. He worked with Phillip Lim in New York, followed by a period at Balmain in Paris. His next five years shaped much of his identity as a designer, spent at Dries Van Noten in Antwerp, where he contributed to both men’s and womenswear collections. These experiences gave him room to refine his understanding of silhouette, construction, and above all, color.
In 2016, he launched Sies Marjan in New York, naming the label after his parents. There, he built a distinct visual language that combined saturated color with surprising material pairings. Critics often pointed to his instinct for contrast, not just in hue, but in structure and tone. The CFDA awarded him Emerging Designer of the Year in 2018, and the brand went on to receive multiple nominations and collaborations. These included projects with textile company Maharam and architect Rem Koolhaas, both of which pushed his work into new territory.
In 2023, Lak published The Colors of Sies Marjan with Rizzoli, a monograph that charted the development of his previous label. The book traced his thought process through visuals, showing how ideas moved from concept to garment. That same attention now drives Sanderlak, though in a different frame, centered not on the past but on an evolving sense of place.
