Beginning Tuesday, lavish, lavish and crafted fashion, jewelry and accessories by 100 designers from Saudi Arabia will be in focus at the Iron23 event space in Manhattan’s Flatiron District.
Saudi designers, many considered emerging brands, were selected from 1,500 fields and were asked to create works specifically for the exhibition reflecting Saudi heritage and culture. The exhibition, titled “Saudi 100 Brands Fashion Show”, is organized by the Saudi Arabian Fashion Council. So far, none of the 100 brands have appeared outside of Saudi Arabia.
The exhibition, which debuted in Riyadh late last year, is divided into eight different categories: ready-to-wear, understated, concept, premiere, half-fashion, bridal, handbags and jewellery. While gorgeous in their extensive use of fabric, embroidery, laser cutting, colour, and references from Saudi architecture and landscape, they are modest in their extent of body covering. On display are robes or ‘thobes’, long coats or ‘abaya’ and large scarves used for headgear called ‘tarha’. But styles were varied, with some streetwear — showing hoodies and some shorts — and more fitted and edgy designs.
“There’s no commercial angle to this show. It’s designed to allow people to see the creativity of regions of the world that have never been exposed to the rest of the world,” Burak Cakmak, CEO of the Saudi Arabian Fashion Council, told WWD in an interview at the show. “It’s open to anyone. It’s a free event. You just need to sign up.”
Kakmak, a former dean of the Parsons School of Design, said the exhibition represented “a starting point for demonstrating the level of creativity”. “Every brand is working on wholesale collections. The idea is that this fall we will have wholesale collections available for retail. Most of these designers have never sold abroad. A few have already sold in the region. International one or two. The aim is to showcase the variety of products designed in the country, and in the exhibition we challenged them to create a display that showcases their creativity and represents who they are, not as a retail item.”
It also aims to clear up misconceptions about Saudi Arabian fashion and how people dress there.
Currently, there are no statistics on the size of the Saudi fashion industry, although the committee is collecting data to determine this, Cakmak said. “Local brands have ambitions to grow internationally and there is a huge demand for international bands to come to Saudi Arabia,” he said.
“One thing people don’t realize is that life in Saudi includes all kinds of products. What’s public and what’s private is different from the rest of the world. That doesn’t mean you see all these products in the west. None are sold in the East. There are different ways to use the product, but each category is still very relevant in the region. There are no limits. It’s really a personal journey for each consumer to decide what they want to wear inside and out of the house .”
The exhibition may travel to other cities, but this is yet to be determined. To help designers further, the Saudi government has been setting up mentoring programs and hiring consultants and experts from fashion companies and academia to guide them.
When asked if international politics could affect American acceptance of Saudi design, Cakmak replied: “The purpose is to connect the creative community and build a bridge between designers and other creatives, designers and businesses. At the end of the day, brands are Both are very focused on building their own business and we really want to focus on the business side with them. This ultimately lets creatives shine and helps them grow their business with no other intentions. When we see creative interacting with the West, It doesn’t matter where they come from. You speak the same language. You focus on where your inspiration comes from, where the culture comes from, and how they affect each other.
“Saudi Arabia is on a growth path in all sectors, including fashion, and there are great opportunities for local entrepreneurs to build new businesses in various parts of the fashion value chain,” added Cakmak. “A strong fashion industry benefits from local creatives, design studios, marketing and communications agencies, manufacturers and retailers. Through projects such as Saudi 100 Brands, we look forward to seeing Saudi designers take their rightful place on the global stage .”
The exhibit is July 26-August 7, Monday-Wednesday 11am-7pm, Thursday-Saturday 11am-8pm, Sunday 12pm-6pm at Iron23, 29 West 23rd Street is open. Tickets can be booked at saudi100brands.nyc.
