Interview Conducted

KEVIN INIONGO ELOKO — BUILDING NEVERLANDESS

by Guillaume Jean Lefebvre

For Kevin Iniongo Eloko, creativity has never been about fitting into an existing category. It is about creating something that did not exist before. Today, as the founder and creative director of Barek Neverlandess, he is building a universe where fashion, art, imagination and creative freedom come together.

Born in France and raised in Paris, Kevin discovered his creative instincts through drawing, particularly manga, before naturally turning toward fashion. Around the age of 16, he began developing the foundations of Barek Neverlandess—a personal universe that would gradually evolve into a broader artistic platform.

Since moving to London in 2017, Kevin has developed his vision through collaborations with French public figures, designers, models, photographers and artists. His involvement with NeverFade, a Soho creative space, allowed him to create customised and hand-painted pieces, participate in fashion shows and begin transforming his ideas into professional projects.

Fashion shows at NeverFade in 2018, followed by events and runways in London and Paris, became important milestones in the evolution of Barek Neverlandess. The project eventually moved beyond clothing to encompass a much broader creative identity.

That evolution reached a new stage during London Fashion Week 2026, when Kevin organised his own Barek Neverlandess Runway Fashion Show. Bringing together designers including Mazalet, RC Margot and AUREM, 27 models and a wider team of photographers, videographers, makeup artists and creatives, the event reflected his ambition to create an experience rather than simply present a collection.

His influences are equally diverse, ranging from Michael Jackson, Japanese culture and manga to old-school aesthetics, luxury, music and cinema. Yet Kevin sees collaboration as essential to his creative process. Alongside his partner Jennifer Sasso, who plays an important role in the development of Barek Neverlandess, he aims to create a space where other artists can contribute their own perspectives.

For Kevin, Barek Neverlandess is therefore much more than a fashion brand. It brings together fashion, art, manga, performance, luxury and imagination, with creative freedom at its core. Building this vision with limited resources has required sacrifice, personal investment and perseverance, but those challenges have reinforced his belief in protecting an original idea.

His definition of success has evolved along the way. Rather than measuring it solely through recognition or financial achievement, Kevin sees success as transforming an idea that existed only in his mind into something real—and creating an emotion in someone else through it.

Now, he is preparing the next chapter. For 2027, Kevin is developing new collections and artistic collaborations, with plans for projects in Paris and ambitions to expand into Milan, Monaco, Atlanta and New York. He is also building relationships with international fashion and modelling professionals, including Miles Models in Atlanta.

Ultimately, Kevin wants Barek Neverlandess to represent freedom, imagination and the courage to create differently. His ambition is not simply to build a successful brand, but to create a universe open to other artists—one where fashion, art and culture can exist without unnecessary boundaries.

For Kevin, Neverlandess is both a creative project and a state of mind. And its next chapter is only beginning.

1. You started developing Barek Neverlandess when you were around 16. When you look at the universe you are building today, what remains from the original idea, and what has completely changed?

The original idea is still there: to create a universe without limits, where art, streetwear and fashion can come together freely. At 16, I was already thinking about something bigger than simply creating a clothing brand. What has changed is the way I build that vision.

I would now like to take streetwear into the world of luxury. That is my new challenge. Luxury has its own codes, and I believe I am capable of developing luxury codes through my creations while keeping the identity of my streetwear universe. This direction is becoming increasingly natural in everything I do.

Barek Neverlandess is growing older. The brand is now much more mature, more considered, more structured and much more international. I have realised and seen that Neverlandess can become a genuine creative platform capable of bringing together different artists, disciplines and cultures around the same emotion.

There is also a small sense of regret in knowing that I can no longer collaborate with just anyone or do certain things as freely as I could before. Barek Neverlandess now has an intellectual responsibility: to reveal new ideas within the fashion industry through its creations. To achieve that, the brand must protect and develop its image and build its place among the great names.

2. You describe Neverlandess as a universe rather than simply a fashion brand. If someone entered the world of Barek Neverlandess for the first time, what would you want them to see, feel and understand?

I would like that person to immediately feel a sense of escape. I want them to understand that there are no real boundaries here between fashion, art, luxury, streetwear and imagination.

I want them to see freedom, creativity, colour, nostalgia, a story, surprise, authenticity, but also something futuristic.

It is a brand where nothing is ever completely the same, yet you can always feel that the universe revolves around luxury, streetwear and drawing.

Above all, I want people to understand that Neverlandess is a living world, a work of art where every creation can tell a different story and create an emotion.

Kevin Iniongo Eloko
Founder of Barek Neverlandess
www.barekneverlandess.org
Instagram: @BarekneverlandessLTD
Email: barekneverlandess@gmail.com

Interview

9. If you had unlimited resources for one Barek Neverlandess project tomorrow, with no financial or logistical restrictions, what would you create?

I would create something similar to Disneyland, but dedicated to fashion and entertainment.

It would not simply be a fashion show. It would be an entire universe made up of different spaces, almost like different chapters of the same story.

There would be fashion, painting, performance, music, artistic installations and futuristic technology.

The audience would be able to walk through this universe as though they were entering directly into my story.

I would also bring together artists from around the world and give them the freedom to create something completely new together.

10. Looking toward 2027 and beyond, what do you want Barek Neverlandess to become—and what would make you feel that you have truly created something that will exist beyond you?

I want Barek Neverlandess to become an international creative house of fashion and art without ever losing its soul.

I want it to become a space where artists can meet, experiment, collaborate and create freely, but with certain boundaries and creative direction in order to protect the identity of the universe.

For me, true success would be seeing Neverlandess continue to inspire people even when I am no longer there to personally direct everything.

If one day other artists can enter this universe, help it evolve and continue transmitting this idea of creative freedom, then I will know that I have created something that goes beyond my own existence.

3. Your influences range from manga and Japanese culture to Michael Jackson, cinema, luxury and old-school aesthetics. How do you transform such different influences into something that feels authentically yours rather than simply referencing them?

I do not try to copy my influences. I try to understand what they make me feel.

Manga inspires me through its energy, the way it communicates with its audience, its characters and its ability to create complete universes.

Michael Jackson inspires me through his performances, his attention to detail, his ability to bring different styles of dance together, combine different influences into one identity and bring artists together around him to offer his audience something extraordinary.

Everything he created did not come entirely from him alone. He knew how to bring different talents together around one vision. To me, he was almost like a scientist of creativity, and I have always studied creativity in a similar way.

Cinema gives me storytelling, luxury gives me standards and aesthetics, and old-school culture brings a particular emotion to streetwear.

Then I mix all of this with my own imagination, almost like preparing a cocktail, using my own knowledge, sensitivity and creativity. That mixture is what gives birth to my creations.

4. Your 2026 London Fashion Week show brought together designers, models, photographers, videographers, makeup artists and other creatives. What did creating an entire experience around your vision teach you about leadership and collaboration?

It taught me that leading a creative project does not mean controlling everything. You need to know how to give a clear direction, choose the right people and trust them.

Everyone had their own personality and their own way of working. My role was to maintain a common vision while giving each person enough space to express their talent.

It taught me that leadership also requires listening, patience, adaptability and a great deal of trust.

Most importantly, I understood how important it is to prepare properly in advance. Good preparation reduces stress and allows you to choose the right people to work with.

People also travelled from other countries to participate in this first edition. That meant a great deal to me.

5. You have said that you like giving other artists freedom within your projects. How do you balance protecting your own artistic vision while allowing other creative personalities to bring something unexpected into the Neverlandess universe?

For me, protecting my vision does not mean preventing other people from expressing themselves or allowing me to simply observe.

I give them a direction, the information they need, an emotion and a starting idea. Then I allow the artist to bring something personal to it.

I know my own level creatively. I have absolute confidence in my creativity and in Neverlandess. But sometimes I also want to be a spectator. I want to work as part of a team, learn and be surprised.

I could continue creating alone almost endlessly, but sometimes I am afraid that one day it could become repetitive or that I might become bored. That is also why I sometimes choose to promote other artists on stage, both for myself and for the audience.

This is very important to me because when I ask someone to work with me, I am also choosing them because of their creativity. Sometimes the result can even be better than what I originally imagined.

Barek Neverlandess must remain a universe that is open to creativity, but it also has to be controlled and remain faithful to its identity. It is a brand that constantly tries to understand and push beyond the limits of its own creations.

6. Building an independent creative universe has required sacrifices, personal investment and patience. Was there ever a moment when you seriously questioned whether you should continue, and what made you keep going?

Yes. There was one particularly difficult period before my event.

I was dealing with housing problems and, a few months before the event, I thought I was going to lose everything after becoming the victim of a financial scam. An Italian woman took £2,000 from us while presenting herself as the organiser of a show, when in reality she did not hold that role. It completely disrupted my financial organisation, and several other problems followed.

At one point, I even found myself without stable accommodation for a period. I genuinely thought I was going to lose everything. It was the first time I had experienced a scam of that scale within this industry.

At that point, I thought about cancelling my event. But through our faith, we held on and continued to believe.

I told myself: “Kev’, you have the chance to be on the ground and disarmed. I still have two feet and two hands to get back up. I grew up knowing poverty, so I know this situation. Take this challenge and use it to stand up again. If you manage to rebuild everything despite your situation, then you will be able to tell yourself that you are indestructible. Do you want to become an indestructible man? Then show me that you can.”

That is how I motivated myself.

I believed in it, I fought for it and I worked different small jobs to recover financially from what I had lost. My wife supported me tremendously throughout that period. It was extremely difficult for her as well. We had to keep working towards an event that we had dreamed of creating for years.

Building something independently requires enormous sacrifices, both financially and personally. Sometimes you give everything without immediately seeing the results.

But I always return to the reason why I started. Creating is part of who I am. Even during difficult periods, my imagination continues to work.

And when I see someone feeling something through my work, wearing one of my creations or connecting personally with my universe, it reminds me why I continue.

7. You are now looking toward Paris, Milan, Monaco, Atlanta and New York. What does international development mean to you beyond simply expanding the name of Barek Neverlandess?

For me, international development is not simply about making the name Barek Neverlandess known in different countries.

It is mainly about discovering other cultures, other artists and other ways of thinking and creating. As I mentioned earlier, sometimes I also enjoy being the spectator.

Every city has a different energy. Paris, Milan, Monaco, Atlanta and New York can all bring something new to Neverlandess: new ideas, new inspiration and new creative possibilities.

My main objective is to create strong connections, collaborations and experiences, such as those I have developed with Miles Models in Atlanta, with Lovilla and Momo’s team, and also with Oksana, from Infinity Fashion Week.

To me, they are among the great women in this industry with whom my heart remains open to working, despite the many opportunities and proposals I may receive.

I would rather build a smaller number of relationships that are sincere, strong and based on genuine artistic and human trust. That is how I see the international development of Barek Neverlandess.

8. Fashion is currently your most visible language, but your ambitions extend into art, performance, manga, luxury and other forms of creative expression. Is there a medium or project you have not explored yet that you particularly want to bring into Neverlandess?

Answer:
Yes. I would like to go much further in the creation of complete universes.

I would especially like to develop the manga side of Neverlandess. But regarding the idea I currently have in my mind, I do not think the public is completely ready for it yet. Perhaps in two generations.

I would like to create immersive experiences where the audience does not simply watch a fashion show, but actually enters a story.

In the long term, I would like fashion to become more than simply clothing. I would like it to become a language capable of telling something much bigger, something that people can actually wear.