One of the most elusive figures in Belgian fashion, Persoons graduated from the Antwerp Fashion Academy in 1992 and apprenticed under Walter Van Beirendonck before launching his own label in 1996 out of a small Antwerp flat — handling everything from design to invoicing himself. A debut in a rented Paris gallery secured his first clients, and the label ran until 2003.

His early work was provocative and anarchic: restrictive silhouettes, fishnets, high heels, imagery evoking violence and sadomasochism. Though he later let the clothes speak for themselves, his punk refusal of convention never left. He rejected Paris Fashion Week entirely in favor of his own spectacular, independent presentations. Persoons' garments are defined by hand-crafted chaos — waves of stitching, pulled threads, layered textile manipulation applied after receiving pieces back from manufacturers.