Houses / Pakistan
Pakistani fashion designers to know
Pakistani fashion runs from HSY’s Lahore couture and Sania Maskatiya’s prints to Khaadi’s hand-woven beginnings and Sana Safinaz’s prêt-to-couture house, with storytelling bridal from Fahad Hussayn and Hussain Rehar, Ali Xeeshan’s theatre, Deepak Perwani’s menswear, Nomi Ansari’s colour, Rizwan Beyg’s artisan embroidery and Nilofer Shahid’s couture. All showed at LAAM Fashion Week; every milestone carries its source.
How this guide works
What counts, and what we leave out
This is an introduction, not a ranking. We chose eleven labels that showed at LAAM Fashion Week in Lahore, at its first season in January–February 2026, its second in October 2026, or its LFW Presents showcases, and that have a public record we could check beyond the organiser’s own pages. Between them they cover couture and bridal, ready-to-wear, menswear and craft-led design. Élan, Karma, Zainab Chottani, Tena Durrani and Mo by Mohsin Tawasuli also showed; we will add them once their histories are sourced.
LAAM facts come from the organiser’s designer pages and line-ups and from reports in Dawn, Daily Pakistan, Daily Times, Minute Mirror and Pakistan & Gulf Economist. Label histories come from the labels’ own sites where they publish one, then from named press: Profit, Arab News, Gulf Times, Gulf News, the Herald and Culture Trip. Where no source names a label’s home city, the profile says Pakistan rather than guess.
Facts were checked on 25 October 2026. If you represent one of these labels and see something out of date, send us a correction.
At a glance
The labels at a glance
| Label | Designer | Since | Known for |
|---|---|---|---|
| HSY | Hassan Sheheryar Yasin | — | Couture and eveningwear: bridal couture and groomswear from a Lahore atelier, and directing the country’s biggest runway shows |
| Sania Maskatiya | Sania Maskatiya, with her brother Umair Tabani as chief executive | 2010 | Ready-to-wear: the label’s own prints and embroidery, from luxury prêt to bridal, sold through stockists abroad |
| Ali Xeeshan Theater Studio | Ali Xeeshan | 2010 | Couture and eveningwear: theatrical bridal wear and couture, edgy shapes loaded with ornament |
| Fahad Hussayn | Fahad Hussayn | — | Couture and eveningwear: storytelling bridal couture and theatrical shows built on folklore, djinns and courtesans |
| Hussain Rehar | Hussain Rehar | 2017 | Couture and eveningwear: vivid, high-contrast colour across prêt, formals and bridal, and a running argument for Lahore’s craft |
| Rizwan Beyg | Rizwan Beyg | — | Textile heritage: heirloom couture embroidered by women artisans in southern Punjab through his Bunyaad project |
| Khaadi | Shamoon Sultan | 1999 | Ready-to-wear: ready-to-wear that began with hand-woven khaddar and grew from one Karachi shop into an international chain |
| Sana Safinaz | Sana Hashwani and Safinaz Muneer | 1989 | Ready-to-wear: a house that runs from unstitched fabric and prêt to bridal couture |
| Deepak Perwani | Deepak Perwani | 1994 | Menswear: a full menswear collection every season alongside bridal and womenswear, and a record seven Lux Style Awards |
| Nomi Ansari | Nomi Ansari | 2001 | Couture and eveningwear: saturated colour and contrasting separates, finished with zardozi and crystal work |
| Meeras by Nilofer Shahid | Nilofer Shahid | — | Couture and eveningwear: couture with intricate threadwork, and the first Pakistani designer invited by the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture |
Profiles
Who they are and what they make.
-
Couture and eveningwear · Lahore
HSY
Hassan Sheheryar Yasin
Hassan Sheheryar Yasin trained at the Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design and runs The World of HSY from HSY Mansion in Gulberg, Lahore, where bridal couture, groomswear and formal wear are made by appointment; the house describes a studio in which dozens of artisans, embroiderers and designers work on every piece. LAAM Fashion Week, which credits him with more than three decades in Pakistani fashion, made him its event director. He directed the first season in Lahore and closed it on 3 February 2026 at Expo Centre Lahore with Musafir, a collection about journeys and Pakistan’s regional heritage, and he directs the second season, which his own show closes on 26 October 2026.
- Makes
- Bridal couture, groomswear and formal wear, made by appointment
- Trained
- Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design, where the label says he graduated as salutatorian
-
Ready-to-wear · Karachi
Sania Maskatiya
Sania Maskatiya, with her brother Umair Tabani as chief executive
Sania Maskatiya, a textile design graduate of the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, launched her Karachi label in 2010 with her brother Umair Tabani, who runs it as chief executive. It is built on its own prints and embroidery and, by its own account, sells through stockists in Europe, the UK, the US, the UAE, Singapore and India. Arab News reported its first international break, a 2014 International Woolmark Prize nomination, and its New York Fashion Week debut in 2018. At LAAM Fashion Week she contributed to the opening showcase of Season I, and on 23 October 2026 opened the Season II designer shows with LALEH, a collection of colour and craft worked in gota, lappa and chunri.
- Since
- 2010
- Makes
- Womenswear from ready-to-deliver and luxury prêt to formals and bridal, plus menswear
- Trained
- Textile design, Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture
-
Couture and eveningwear · Pakistan
Ali Xeeshan Theater Studio
Ali Xeeshan
Ali Xeeshan graduated with distinction from the Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design, trained further in Germany and Paris, and set up Ali Xeeshan Theater Studio after the success of his debut collection at PFDC Fashion Week in 2010, according to LAAM Fashion Week’s designer profile. His bridal wear and couture pair sharp, unusual silhouettes with heavy ornament, and the profile presents him as a visual artist whose work goes beyond clothes. He showed Maqsad on the opening night of LAAM Fashion Week’s first season, on 31 January 2026, and is in the final designer act of the second season on 26 October 2026, alongside Erum Khan, Mohtaram and HSY.
- Since
- 2010
- Makes
- Bridal wear and couture
- Trained
- Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design (with distinction), then further training in Germany and Paris
-
Couture and eveningwear · Lahore
Fahad Hussayn
Fahad Hussayn runs his bridal and couture house from a studio in Lahore. LAAM Fashion Week’s profile describes opulent handwork, unusual prints and theatrical runway shows, and in October 2025 Dawn’s Maliha Rehman wrote about a 16-year career built on invented worlds, with djinns, courtesans and puppets among his characters. Below couture sit Print Museum wedding formals, Faction printed lawn and Menagerie statement jewellery, and by late 2025 he had opened the Fahad Hussayn Academy in Karachi, a studio and shop where he plans to train young designers. At LAAM Fashion Week he showed a collection inspired by the revived Basant festival in Season I, directed the first LFW Presents showcase, for Hussain Rehar, and closes the designer act on 25 October 2026.
- Makes
- Bridal couture and men’s formals, Print Museum wedding formals, Faction printed lawn and Menagerie jewellery
- October 2025 Opens the Fahad Hussayn Academy, a studio and shop in Karachi. Source ↗
- February 2026 Shows a Basant-inspired collection at LAAM Fashion Week Season I. Source ↗
- February 2026 Directs LFW Presents: Hussain Rehar at Islamia College, Lahore. Source ↗
- 25 October 2026 Closes the designer act on day three of LAAM Fashion Week Season II. Source ↗
-
Couture and eveningwear · Lahore
Hussain Rehar
Hussain Rehar, a graduate of the Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design, founded his Lahore label on 23 August 2017. It now spans prêt, formals, bridal and menswear, with the sister labels Jeevan and Jugnu, and was nominated for Rising Talent at the Lux Style and Hum Style Awards. In May 2026 he showed Lahore — A Knot in South Asia’s Loom at an invitation-only event at Château St George during the Cannes Film Festival, a collection Dawn Images described as celebrating Lahore as a source of craft. LAAM Fashion Week chose him for its first solo LFW Presents showcase in February 2026: more than 60 looks, mostly bridal, in crimson and burgundy velvet with gold, staged in front of Islamia College and directed by Fahad Hussayn. Jugnu Studios by Hussain Rehar closes the Season II designer act on 24 October 2026.
- Since
- 2017
- Makes
- Prêt, luxury prêt, formals, bridal and menswear, with the sister labels Jeevan and Jugnu
- Trained
- Fashion design, Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design
- 23 August 2017 Founds his label. Source ↗
- February 2026 Stages the first LFW Presents solo showcase at Islamia College, Lahore. Source ↗
- 15 May 2026 Shows Lahore — A Knot in South Asia’s Loom at Château St George during the Cannes Film Festival. Source ↗
- 24 October 2026 Jugnu Studios by Hussain Rehar closes the designer act on day two of LAAM Fashion Week Season II. Source ↗
-
Textile heritage · Karachi
Rizwan Beyg
Rizwan Beyg, a Karachi-based designer, marked three decades of work in 2019, when the Herald described Pearlessence, a collection of heirloom couture whose embroidery was made by artisans in southern Punjab under Bunyaad, the project he founded with the motto “Changing lives … one stitch at a time”. Gulf News reported in 2018 that rural women had trained over three years to reach couture-level embroidery for his label, and that 16 of them went on to teach the craft in Sharjah. In August 2019 he was named for the Tamgha-i-Imtiaz, Pakistan’s fourth-highest civilian decoration. He held the invitation-only slot on the first night of LAAM Fashion Week, on 31 January 2026, with Jashan: ivory, beige and off-white handloom tissue, chiffon and silk with pewter silver work, embellished entirely by women in rural Punjab.
- Makes
- Couture, bridal and festive wear
- November 2018 Sixteen artisans trained under his label begin teaching embroidery in Sharjah. Source ↗
- May 2019 Pearlessence marks three decades of his work, embroidered through Bunyaad. Source ↗
- August 2019 Named for the Tamgha-i-Imtiaz. Source ↗
- 31 January 2026 Shows Jashan in the invitation-only slot of LAAM Fashion Week Season I. Source ↗
-
Ready-to-wear · Karachi
Khaadi
Shamoon Sultan
Shamoon Sultan took up weaving at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture and set out on his own in early 1998, installing handlooms at a family factory in Karachi’s SITE industrial area to build a retail brand for hand-woven khaddar. Profit dates Khaadi’s launch, from a shop in Zamzama, to December 1999; the brand opened its first store abroad in Dubai in 2010 and in the UK from 2013. Khaadi contributed to the opening showcases of both LAAM Fashion Week seasons, and at LFW Presents: Kaleidoscopic Karachi in September 2026 showed Karachi – It’s Complicated, with Eman Suleman as showstopper.
- Since
- 1999
- Makes
- Ready-to-wear clothing, rooted in hand-woven cloth
- Trained
- Shamoon Sultan: weaving and textiles, Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture
-
Ready-to-wear · Pakistan
Sana Safinaz
Sana Hashwani and Safinaz Muneer
Sana Hashwani and Safinaz Muneer established Sana Safinaz in 1989. Run through SSFR (Pvt.) Limited, the house now spans prêt, diffusion and bridal couture alongside unstitched fabric, accessories and footwear, and in 2013 it opened a chain of retail outlets across Pakistan, according to its own history. It closed LAAM Fashion Week’s Kaleidoscopic Karachi showcase in September 2026 with Mastaani, a luxury couture and festive collection walked by 20 models, with Javeria Hanif as showstopper in a black veil, a heavily embellished gold blouse and a red dupatta, Pakistan & Gulf Economist reported.
- Since
- 1989
- Makes
- Prêt, diffusion, bridal couture, unstitched fabric, accessories and footwear
-
Menswear · Karachi
Deepak Perwani
Deepak Perwani grew up in Mirpurkhas and started his label in 1994, Gulf Times reported in 2017, when it called him one of the few powerhouse menswear designers in Pakistan and credited him with seven Lux Style Awards, a record for a designer. He works from a studio in Karachi, has shown in Miami and Milan, has organised shows including Fashion Pakistan Week and has chaired the Fashion Pakistan Council. In September 2026 his collection Cocktail Hour opened LAAM Fashion Week’s Kaleidoscopic Karachi showcase, walked by Frieha Altaf, Seemi Pasha and Atiya Khan, and on 23 October 2026 he showed LEGACY, a menswear collection, on the opening night of Season II.
- Since
- 1994
- Makes
- Menswear, bridal and womenswear
-
Couture and eveningwear · Karachi
Nomi Ansari
Nomi Ansari, who was born in Karachi into a carpet-weaving family, developed his couture skills at the Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design and set up his Karachi studio in 2001, Culture Trip reported; it noted his reputation for bold colour and contrasting separates finished with zardozi and crystals. At LAAM Fashion Week he contributed to the Season I opening showcase and showed Metamorphosis on the final day, 3 February 2026: flowing, layered silhouettes in shifting colours with needlework and hand craft drawn from nature’s cycles, according to his LFW profile. Dawn Images singled out his collection for its wearability and retail appeal.
- Since
- 2001
- Makes
- Prêt, occasion wear and bridal couture
- Trained
- Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design
-
Couture and eveningwear · Pakistan
Meeras by Nilofer Shahid
Nilofer Shahid
Nilofer Shahid was the first Pakistani designer invited by the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, Dawn reported in 2010, and ensembles from her Khalil Gibran collection walked in Paris at the 2006 Tribute to Balenciaga. After a long hiatus she returned to the runway in April 2025 at the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan’s one-day show in Lahore, where Daily Times called her Pakistan’s queen of couture. Her label Meeras took a piece to the LAAM Fashion Week Season I opening showcase and headlined the invitation-only show that closed the opening night of Season II, on 23 October 2026, with Tapestries in the Looms of Time.
- Makes
- Couture and bridal wear
- 2006 Shows her Khalil Gibran collection in Paris at the Tribute to Balenciaga. Source ↗
- April 2025 Returns to the runway at the TDAP show in Lahore after a long hiatus. Source ↗
- 23 October 2026 Headlines LFW By Invite Only on the opening night of LAAM Fashion Week Season II with Tapestries in the Looms of Time. Source ↗
In person
Where to see Pakistani design
Lahore is the place to start: LAAM Fashion Week Season II runs 23–26 October 2026 at Expo Centre Lahore, with Sania Maskatiya, Deepak Perwani and Meeras on opening night, Hussain Rehar’s Jugnu Studios on 24 October, Fahad Hussayn on 25 October and Ali Xeeshan and HSY closing on 26 October. Every show streams live and every collection goes on sale on LAAM as it walks. The Season I page has the first season’s running order and models.
For the people around the clothes, see Eman Suleman, Mushk Kaleem and the rest of our Pakistani talent, and the photographer Tapu Javeri and the hair and makeup entrepreneur Nabila among our creatives.
For dressing for a Pakistani wedding, our bridal fitting checklist and unstitched lawn brief cover the practical side; for labels from other countries, browse our houses section or the Asian fashion week calendar.
More designer guides: South Korean fashion designers to know · Indonesian fashion designers to know · Malaysian fashion designers to know · Thai fashion designers to know · Vietnamese fashion designers to know · Japanese fashion designers to know · Mexican fashion designers to know · Brazilian fashion designers to know · Chinese fashion designers to know · Indian fashion designers to know · Nigerian fashion designers to know
Sources
Sources
Each milestone above links its own source. These are every page we relied on, checked on the date shown.
Represent one of these labels and spotted an error? Send a correction with a link to the record.
Quick answers
Pakistani designers, answered
Which Pakistani designers showed at LAAM Fashion Week?
- Season I (31 January–3 February 2026) included designer shows by Tena Durrani, Zainab Salman, Ali Xeeshan, Rizwan Beyg, Karma, Fahad Hussayn, The House of Kamiar Rokni, Mo by Mohsin Tawasuli, Saira Shakira, Nomi Ansari, Zainab Chottani and HSY. Season II (23–26 October 2026) has 17 designer shows, among them Sania Maskatiya, Deepak Perwani, Meeras by Nilofer Shahid, Jugnu Studios by Hussain Rehar, Fahad Hussayn, Ali Xeeshan and HSY.
Who directs LAAM Fashion Week?
- The couturier HSY (Hassan Sheheryar Yasin) is event director. He directed the first season, closed it with Musafir on 3 February 2026, and closes the second season with his own show on 26 October 2026.
Which Pakistani designer was first invited by the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture?
- Nilofer Shahid, Dawn reported in 2010; her Khalil Gibran collection was shown in Paris at the 2006 Tribute to Balenciaga. Her label Meeras headlined the invitation-only show of LAAM Fashion Week Season II on 23 October 2026.
When was Khaadi founded?
- Shamoon Sultan set out on his own in early 1998, and Profit dates Khaadi’s launch, from a shop in Zamzama, Karachi, to December 1999. The brand began with hand-woven khaddar and opened its first international store in Dubai in 2010.
Which Pakistani designers have shown in New York or at Cannes?
- Sania Maskatiya showed at New York Fashion Week in 2018, Arab News reported. Hussain Rehar showed Lahore — A Knot in South Asia’s Loom at Château St George during the Cannes Film Festival on 15 May 2026.