Malaysian Indie Label Ghostboy Gets Into The Spirit Of Y2K

Get to know the Kuala Lumpur-based label blowing up on social media with its rave-ready pieces.

malaysian fashion label — Channel the Y2K spirit. Credit: Ghostboy

By Keng Yang Shuen, 8 Nov 2021

The coming-of-age of Gen Z has ignited a global movement of young creatives taking things into their own hands, offering DIY-heavy solutions to existing gaps in the market.

This Kuala Lumpur-based label founded last February by David Han and Cyii Cheng runs with the same energy. It all started when Cheng – a model by day who also appears in the brand’s campaigns – wanted to learn how to sew. Off the duo went, hunting for fabrics.

The result would become their signature item: tight crop tops created from piecing together cut-up thrifted tees or scraps of upcycled fabrics with irreverent graphics (hello My Melody and the Von Dutch logo), using overlocking stitches that leave a raw, puckered effect – and a whole lot of Y2K edge.

Both are active members of the Malaysian capital’s underground scene. Designs, which now extend to hoodies and teeny-tiny bodycon dresses and bikini tops, often begin with the fashion-trained Han asking Cheng if she would wear them to a party.

This hyper-trendy, “grandma-not-approved” aesthetic has turned the brand, which is stocked at multi-label store Spades here, into a hit on social media and among the demographic weaned on the platform.

Its videos on upcycling old clothes – shared on Instagram page @ghostboy.club – add to the appeal. Says Cheng: “It’s a huge flex to be able to tell someone who compliments your outfit, ‘hey, thanks – I made it myself this morning.’”