Tailored suits are a signature of Dzojchen, a luxury menswear brand founded by Chelsea Scott-Blackhall. Seen on the likes of Ryan Gosling, Austin Butler, Pedro Pascal and Jenna Ortega, Dzojochen has built a name for itself with both custom and a ready-to-wear line.

With five million followers on Instagram alone, Cider is among China’s biggest fashion e-commerce platforms. Since then, the brand has also grown to make a mark in Europe and the US; celebrities and fashion influencers such as Millie Bobby Brown have been spotted wearing their goods. The man behind it all is Wang Chen and in 2021, the brand secured $130 million in Series B funding in 2021 from investors such as DST Global, A16z, and Greenoaks Capital. 

Gender-fluid fashion has been a form of expression for Ray Chu. His eponymous brand embraces diversity and inclusion guided by the pillars of sustainability. Its androgynous clothes are created using vegan leather and organic cotton. 

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Nadine Gaus weaves Indonesian heritage into her designs. Through her brand Wearing Klamby, she proudly shows off modest wear adorned with national flowers, etched onto national fabrics such as the Java textile, tenun garut. Even the name of the brand is derived from the Javanese term klambi, or clothing. Paving the way for inclusivity in both culture and religion, Gaus’ fashion line boasts millions of followers online and has been shown at London Fashion Week. 

Promoting female empowerment has been top of mind for Indonesian fashion entrepreneur Michelle Maryam. This is perhaps why her designs carry strong silhouettes: dynamic cuts and lines made with impressive fabrics in strong colours. Maryallé—an amalgamation of her first and last names “Michelle” and “Maryam”—currently has boutiques in Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, New York, Europe and the Middle East, and has plans to further expand in Southeast Asia. 

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A former co-founder of Lazada Thailand, David Jou is no stranger to e-commerce. His current venture, Pomelo, is a digital fast-fashion brand that capitalises on trends. It services customers in more than 40 countries and has multiple offices across Southeast Asia. Offerings on Pomelo bank on popular styles, from pink co-ords inspired by the Barbie movie to sequinned tops and corsets in honour of Pride Month.

Paying homage to the vivacity of Thai culture, Rukpong Raimaturapong has created a fashion brand that is bright, colourful and easily recognised. His creativity has allowed him to play with a mixture of fabrics, textures and silhouettes. Before the nascence of his eponymous brand, Raimaturapong worked for luxury fashion houses Celine and Saint Laurent. In 2021, he became the first Thai designer to win the prestigious 19M des Métiers d’Art de Chanel prize.

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With the backing of Indonesian television presenter Deddy Corbuzier, Erigo is on track to become one of Indonesia’s most well-recognised brands among the youth. Its founder Muhammad Sadad was able to take the brand to New York in 2021 for its debut at Fashion Week. Since then, Erigo has opened more than 100 pop-up stores and is among the top fashion brands on Indonesian e-commerce sites. Its products focus on core basics and wardrobe staples that cater to men and women, and has even collaborated on a line with Disney. 

A familiar name for Singaporean shoppers, Love, Bonito is best known for its clean-cut silhouettes and feminine styles. It has a presence across Asia including countries like Indonesia, Hong Kong, Japan, Cambodia and the Philippines. In June 2023, the brand launched its first US pop-up store in New York’s Soho neighbourhood, marking its entry into the American market. Rachel Lim, who is the co-founder of the brand, is a fashion e-commerce pioneer in Singapore, who started the brand as a blog shop with two friends. 

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The co-founder and fashion designer of apparel brand Seivson, Jill Shen has been busy expanding her line across Japan, Paris and New York. Since establishing her brand in 2017, she and her co-founder Emily Song have been finding creative ways to marry fun silhouettes with voluminous designs. Experimenting with fabrics, Seivson blends the chic with the rugged, presenting its clientele with a laidback look of a modern cool girl.

What can passion build you? For Jemina Ty, the answer is a swimsuit empire. Dropping out of college to pursue her dream business has gotten her close to a million followers, not to mention plenty of attention from celebrities wearing her well-known brand, Blackbough Swim. The trendy swim line has expanded to include surf suits, maxi and mini dresses, and even a collaboration with the Amazon Prime Video TV series, The Summer I Turned Pretty. 

Meet more honourees in Fashion on the Gen.T List.

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