Sies Marjan only launched in 2016, during the Fall-Winter New York Collections, but Sander Lak, the creative force behind the brand, is far from a newcomer. Before Sies Marjan, he honed his talent with some of the top designers in the world. The Dutch native held a five-year tenure at Dries Van Noten, and prior to this, he worked at Balmain in Paris and Phillip Lim in New York. Armed with such a wealth of experience and ready for a next challenge, the designer arrived at Sies Marjan. The label quickly became a New York favorite, and in just a few seasons, he garnered accolades and a following with his sense of color, proportion and what the brand refers to as subversive choices of materials.
While his influence in fashion is unquestionable, Lak’s journey to fashion actually started with a rejection.
“I really wanted to be a film director, and the only reason I ended up being in fashion is because I didn’t get into film school,” he recalled. “I wanted to kill time before applying again, so I went to art school and fell into fashion. It clicked immediately and never applied for film school again.”
Eager to learn more, he continued his studies at Central Saint Martins, from which he graduated in 2008 with an MA in Fashion. He credits Louise Wilson, the famed late Saint Martins teacher, as “the main person who has pushed me the hardest.”
Lak’s education and mentorship in London was only one of the several destinations where his accomplished fashion career has taken him. He was born in Brunei, raised in Holland, and lived in the UK, France, and Belgium. These travels are undoubtedly a contributing factor to the designer’s creative thought. With a unique vision informed by a global perspective, it comes as no surprise why Sies Marjan is one of the most promising labels in American fashion today.
“Everything led up to Sies Marjan somehow,” the CFDA Swarovski Award for Emerging Talent nominee said.
As for where the journey will take him next, Lak outlines a very specific destination: “To infinity and beyond.”
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