Ahmed Hassan: Informing the Architecture of Timelessness

For Ahmed Hassan, fashion is about time, not trends. “The importance of having culturally relevant fashion that is of the time is what first inspired me to do what I do,” he says. As the co-founder and Creative Director of KML, a conceptual fashion house based between Riyadh and Paris, he creates garments that bridge eras and geographies, reflecting both his Saudi heritage and global perspective.

Trained in architecture, Hassan brings a sense of proportion and structure that gives his designs a sculptural quality. “Architecture taught me about human scale, about how people inhabit form,” he reflects. “It’s an understanding that continues to shape the way I approach fashion.” Together with his sister Razan, Hassan has built KML into one of the region’s most closely watched menswear labels, one that speaks softly but carries conviction.

In recent years, it has shown collections at fashion weeks in Riyadh, Milan, and Paris, and was a semi-finalist in the 2025 LVMH Prize. The brand also won the Emerging Talent award at the inaugural Arab Fashion Awards, organised by the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, and was the only Middle Eastern label included in the BoF 500 Class of 2025—an acknowledgement of its growing influence on the global stage. 

Hassan’s gaze, however, remains rooted in the cultural soil from which his work springs. “I’d love to see more celebration and development of culture,” he says. “It’s about offering a perspective on how culturally relevant fashion could look like.” That perspective is one of restraint and reverence. Hassan finds inspiration in design that has survived centuries of human use. 

“Whoever designed the Arabic bisht is very inspiring to me,” he says. “It’s genius to design something this beautiful and this timeless. The same applies to whoever designed the kimono or any traditional pieces that are still in use.” His admiration for these garments lies not only in their form, but also their philosophy—a belief that true design endures because it is honest, functional, and rooted in identity.

For Hassan, fashion is also a language of connection. “It shows that, on some level, all humans are united and come from the same source,” he explains. “If we are true to this principle, we have the ability to produce timeless, universal things.” At KML, this universality manifests in silhouettes that echo tradition while gesturing towards what lies ahead.

His process is driven, as he puts it, by the urge to express and develop culture. The impulse is about seeing culture as a living organism that continues to evolve through care and curiosity. “I wish for the creative scene in our region to go back to itself more,” he says, envisioning a future where authenticity and innovation move hand in hand.

When asked what he hopes to ultimately achieve, Hassan’s answer is disarmingly simple. “I would love to continue having this privilege of being able to produce fashion,” he says. “That’s all I ask for.” It is perhaps this humility that defines his work. In an age that often confuses immediacy with relevance, the designer’s vision for KML reminds us that the most enduring designs are those that belong not to a season, but to history itself.