One highlight from London Fashion Week was the collaboration between Albanian‑American model Elton Ilirjani, known on the catwalk as HANKO, who opened the show for Giuseppe Iaciofano’s fledgling label Poet Lab. The genderless‑advocate and influencer with more than 12 million Instagram followers, turned the traditional runway into a performance art piece, using his eyes, hands and fluid movements to embody the brand’s manifesto: “real, soft but strong.”
Poet Lab, a London‑based label founded in 2023, is redefining genderless luxury streetwear through a blend of geometric precision, minimalist cut and oversized silhouettes. Iaciofano, a former Milan‑trained tailor turned creative director, described the show as “the meeting point of poetry and technology—where code meets cloth.”
“I don’t believe in following rules,” Iaciofano told the assembled press after the final walk. “My vision thrives in the tension between opposites—minimalism meets excess, softness meets structure, tradition collides with rebellion. This dialogue is my formula for rewriting the norm.”
The collection, titled Resilient Dream, drew directly from Iaciofano’s personal narrative of surviving cancer and confronting discrimination. Each piece featured smart‑fabric inserts—lightweight, breathable polymers that change hue with body heat—while the oversized coats were cut from recycled Italian wool blended with a proprietary nylon‑graphene weave that promises enhanced durability without added weight.
“The tech we’re using isn’t a gimmick; it’s a tool for storytelling,” Iaciofano added. “When the fabric reacts to the wearer’s body temperature, it mirrors the way we all adapt to life’s pressures. It’s a literal embodiment of the brand’s core—turning struggle into a statement.”
Ilirjani, who has become a runway staple at fashion capitals from Paris to Tokyo, embraced the tech‑laden garments with his signature avant‑garde poise. Instead of a conventional catwalk strut, he paced the runway in a synchronized choreography with a subtle, low‑frequency pulse that seemed to make the smart‑fabric ripple in time with his steps. The performance earned a standing ovation and quickly went viral, garnering over three million views on Instagram within hours.
“Walking for Poet Lab felt like stepping onto a living poem,” Ilirjani said in a post‑show interview. “The clothing is a canvas that reacts to you, just as we react to the world. It’s a reminder that we are not static; we are fluid, and fashion should celebrate that fluidity.”
A New Era of Tech‑Infused Inclusivity
Poet Lab’s debut at London Fashion Week signifies a broader shift within the industry toward integrating technology with inclusive design. The label’s partnership with London‑based textile start‑up FiberFusion—the firm behind the brand’s heat‑responsive fibers—and its use of AI‑assisted pattern generation marks the outfit’s production as one of the most technologically advanced genderless collections to date.
Industry analysts see this convergence as a catalyst for change. Mara Patel, senior analyst at TrendTech Insights, noted:
“We’re witnessing a convergence of sustainability, technology, and genderless aesthetics. Poets Lab’s approach, especially with a high‑profile model like Ilirjani, signals that the market is ready for fashion that is both expressive and engineered.”
Ilirjani’s Ongoing Advocacy in Fashion
Ilirjani’s presence on the runway also underscores his growing role as a cultural bridge. Since coming out publicly as gay in 2016—a watershed moment for Albania’s conservative society—he has leveraged his platform to champion LGBTQ+ rights and to promote designers who push conventional boundaries. In recent years, he has collaborated with Japanese multimedia artist Naoko Tosa, Icelandic collective Arabesque Boudoir, and New York’s emerging label Winruit, among others, consistently using his runway appearances to spotlight under‑represented voices.
His influence extends beyond the catwalk. The model’s Instagram feed, which blends fashion, activism, and performance art, reaches a global audience that includes both high‑fashion aficionados and tech‑savvy millennials. By aligning with Poet Lab, Ilirjani reinforces his commitment to “fashion as language of thought, emotion, and identity,” a sentiment echoed in the brand’s own mission statement.
What’s Next for Poet Lab?
Following the London showcase, Iaciofano announced plans to roll out a limited‑edition capsule for the upcoming Digital Fashion Week in New York, featuring fully virtual garments rendered in real‑time through augmented‑reality lenses. The collection will be sold exclusively as NFTs, granting buyers access to both the physical piece and its digital counterpart—another step toward merging the tangible and the virtual in fashion.
“We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible,” Iaciofano said. “Our next chapter will be about expanding the dialogue—bringing poetry to code, style to the metaverse.”
As London Fashion Week closes, the convergence of Ilirjani’s kinetic artistry and Poet Lab’s tech‑forward vision leaves an indelible mark, suggesting that the runway of tomorrow will be as much a laboratory for innovation as a stage for couture.
Photo: Arun Nevader.
