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Alex Po & Derek Cheng

Alex Po & Derek Cheng

PONDER.ER, the brainchild of creative duo Alex Po and Derek Cheng, challenges gender stereotypes and deconstructs social norms. The label’s striking gender-fluid designs are centred around the examination and dissemination of stereotypes and conventions, and they invite wearers to experiment and explore their own identities. The brand has collaborated with the Hong Kong Ballet and was featured in Vogue Hong Kong’s ‘The Next List 2020’. It was named the Yu Prize 2022 Grand Prize winner and one of 10 Asian Designers To Watch from Fashion Asia Hong Kong. PONDER.ER was shortlisted as a semi-finalist for the 2024 LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers and a finalist at Vogue China Fashion Fund.

One half of the designer duo behind gender-fluid label PONDER.ER, Alex Po’s early career paved the way for the unique brand. He graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2016, where his graduate collection, inspired by 1930s men’s swimwear and 1970s disco suits, won the Alcantara Sponsorship award. After interning at Simone Rocha, Charlie Allen Bespoke and Christian Wijnants, he continued his studies at the Royal College of Art, specialising in knitwear and pushing the boundaries of combining it with menswear. In 2017, Po was chosen to work with Botto Giuseppe for an exhibition in Pitti Fillati. In 2018, he received critical acclaim for his Master’s collection with his work receiving coverage in publications including Vogue, HERO Magazine and 1 Granary. Po was featured on Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 list in 2023.

Derek Cheng graduated from Central Saint Martins, with a graduate collection entitled ‘Objects of Hong Kong’, paying tribute to his hometown and celebrating local cultures, social change, and the relationship between fashion and identity. Included as part of the institution’s 2016 Press Show, the collection was also featured in Vogue, HIGHSNOBIETY, WGSN/INSIDER and other publications. Cheng was selected as one of the CFDA+ graduates that same year. Derek’s latest venture is co-founding gender-fluid designer label PONDER.ER, which seeks to subvert and reimagine stereotypes around gender conventions and social norms. The brand has made waves internationally for its unique approach, with designs that invite wearers to experiment and express their own identities. Cheng was featured on Prestige Hong Kong’s 40 Under 40 List in 2023.

Call it challenging gender stereotypes, dismantling social norms or subverting the status quo, PONDER,ER is about embracing di!erent choices and cultivating a sense of personal identity. The label’s gender-fluid designs dissect and reinterpret contemporary classics. Tempering the edges of masculine stereotypes, with silhouettes, fabrics and philosophies that encourage experimentation and imagination, PONDER.ER is proud to invoke a soft revolution. With comfort at its core, PONDER.ER makes way for liberation by rejecting rigidity around how genders should behave and how clothes should be constructed. Every collection is a conversation between customer and creator, where everyone has the freedom to celebrate, explore and experience a vibrant spectrum of fashion aesthetics and expressions.

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