pln-gns world

This season, Croix Magazine took to the snowy city of Berlin for one show and one show only - PLN-GNS  “ERROR AS ASSET”

PLN-GNS has built its reputation on refusing to treat sustainability as aesthetic decoration. Instead, the Kyiv-founded, Berlin-rooted label approaches circularity as infrastructure, and on Sunday evening, with “ERROR AS ASSET”, the brand delivered one of Berlin Fashion Week’s most conceptually charged and emotionally resonant presentations.

The 30-look collection reframed imperfection as creative currency, transforming discarded sneakers into garments that felt equal parts sculpture, uniform and protest. At its core sat two parallel lines that demonstrated both the ideology and scalability of the PLN-GNS system.

The ICONIC line formed the conceptual backbone of the collection. Entirely constructed from dismantled sneakers, each garment exists as a one-of-one artefact, requiring up to 80 hours of manual reconstruction. Panels of rubber, leather and mesh were re-engineered into sharp, architectural silhouettes that challenged the boundaries between garment construction and object design. The pieces carry visible histories - scuffs, distortions and material memory - repositioned as markers of value rather than flaws.

Running alongside, the SIGNATURE line translated this radical circular language into a more scalable framework. Combining stock fabrics, production defects and reduced sneaker components, the line introduced the possibility of capsule releases while maintaining PLN-GNS’ strict closed-loop philosophy. It is within this balance that the brand reveals its greatest strength: proving that experimental design and functional production do not need to exist in opposition.

The show itself unfolded as performance as much as presentation. Models sprinted down the runway to the relentless pulse of Berlin techno, their hair dusted in artificial snow and visages hardened by frost-like makeup. As they ran, flakes scattered into the front row, collapsing the distance between audience and narrative and delivering a literal interpretation of the term runway. The gesture felt both playful and confrontational, injecting urgency into the viewing experience while anchoring the collection within Berlin’s cultural DNA.

The beauty direction carried a far heavier symbolism. References to frostbite and exposure directly reflected the lived reality of Ukraine’s ongoing humanitarian crisis, where targeted attacks on civilian energy infrastructure have left communities without reliable heating or electricity. Rather than functioning as abstract political messaging, the visual language served as testimony, embedding the collection within the realities that shape its production.

That production remains deeply tied to Ukraine, where PLN-GNS continues to operate a working studio despite war-related disruptions, power outages and ongoing security risks. Each collection repurposes between 500 and 800 pairs of discarded sneakers, reinforcing the brand’s position as one of the few labels operating within a genuinely closed-cycle production model with minimal additional CO₂ output.

The show’s final moment provided its most striking contrast. As the music cut and the runway energy dissolved, a curtain dropped to reveal the cast standing motionless in formation. The audience was invited into a moment of stillness, allowing each look to be studied in detail. The scene felt almost ceremonial - diverse bodies, genders and identities presented as equal participants within a collective system rather than individualised fashion archetypes.

Since its founding in 2021 by Mitya Hontarenko and Iryna Ambrosova, PLN-GNS has evolved into something far beyond a fashion label. Operating as part design studio, part innovation laboratory and part circular consultancy, the brand is actively reshaping how contemporary labels can function. Their work reframes the designer not as sole author, but as facilitator of a collaborative process between material, wearer and system.

With ERROR AS ASSET, PLN-GNS reaffirmed its position as one of Berlin Fashion Week’s most intellectually and culturally vital voices. In an industry still negotiating how sustainability can move beyond surface-level responsibility, PLN-GNS presents a model where circularity becomes identity, resistance and future blueprint simultaneously.