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Saudi Arabia will host its first fashion week in Riyadh next month

Saudi Arabia will host its first fashion week in Riyadh next month

The first Arab Fashion Week in Riyadh will be more than a world-class event, promises Saudi Princess Noura
20 Feb, 2018

Saudi Arabia is set to host in March its first ever Arab Fashion Week, the Arab Fashion Council announced on Monday, overturning decades of draconian policies on arts and entertainment.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the powerful heir to the Saudi throne, has been leading a drive to reform the country’s dependence on oil, including expanding the private sector and empowering women.

The Dubai-based Arab Fashion Council said on its website that fashion week would be held in Riyadh from March 26 to March 31, with a second edition already scheduled for October.

L-R: Caroline Rush, CEO of the British Fashion Council; Princess Noura bint Faisal, honorary president of the Arab Fashion Council; Layla Issa Abuzaid, KSA country director at the Arab Fashion Council; and Jacob Abrian, founder and CEO of the Arab Fashion Council. (Ben Broomfield)
L-R: Caroline Rush, CEO of the British Fashion Council; Princess Noura bint Faisal, honorary president of the Arab Fashion Council; Layla Issa Abuzaid, KSA country director at the Arab Fashion Council; and Jacob Abrian, founder and CEO of the Arab Fashion Council. (Ben Broomfield)

Arab Fashion Week will take place at Riyadh’s eco-friendly Apex Centre, a white honeycomb-like venue designed by the late celebrated Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid.

In December, the Arab Fashion Council announced the opening of a regional office in Riyadh and named Saudi Princess Noura Bint Faisal Al-Saud as its honorary president.

“The first Arab Fashion Week in Riyadh will be more than a world-class event, it is a catalyst through which we believe the fashion sector will lead other economic sectors such as tourism, hospitality, travel, and trade,” Princess Noura said in a statement on the council’s website.

Listed as an international fashion week alongside Paris and Milan, the twice-yearly Arab Fashion Week offers exclusively see-now-buy-now collections and pre-collections.

The line-up for the Riyadh event has not been revealed yet and it remains unclear whether it will limited to modest designs in accordance with the strict dress code observed in Saudi Arabia.

The Arab Fashion Council said on its website that fashion week would be held in Riyadh from March 26 to March 31, with a second edition already scheduled for October
The Arab Fashion Council said on its website that fashion week would be held in Riyadh from March 26 to March 31, with a second edition already scheduled for October

The Gulf kingdom, which has some of the world’s tightest restrictions on women, requires them to wear, by law, a loose-fitting abaya robe to shroud their bodies in public. Earlier this month, a senior Saudi cleric said Saudi women should not be “forced to wear abayas”.

The comment was made by Sheikh Abdullah al-Mutlak, a member of the Council of Scholars — the kingdom’s highest religious body. The government has not said whether it will change the law.

But Prince Mohammed has introduced over the past months a series of reforms in favour of women.

In January, Saudi women were allowed for the first time ever to enter a football stadium to watch a game and the kingdom is also opening several sectors of the workplace to women.

Saudi Arabia has also announced an end to a longstanding ban on women driving, which is to take effect in June.

In the past, Arab Fashion Week have been hosted so far exclusively by Gulf fashion capital Dubai and have included runway darlings Marchesa and Tony Ward.

Originally published in Dawn, February 20th, 2018

Comments

ziauddin Feb 20, 2018 01:19pm
Congratulations for Saudia's people specially Riyd residents avail the this modern achievement.
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bhutto Feb 20, 2018 01:31pm
Good move towards independance
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Shamin Feb 20, 2018 03:45pm
Modernization or Westernization? Indeed, Saudis are confused!
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Daanish Feb 20, 2018 04:06pm
Funny, zero in education and innovation. This is their way of competing with civilized west.
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H Khan Feb 20, 2018 07:24pm
@ziauddin Modern? I wonder who sets the standards for being modern and backwards? If tomorrow the Western women start wearing Hajab I swear our liberals will be running to the nearest store to clean out the stocks.
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H Khan Feb 20, 2018 07:24pm
Why?
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Ali rahman Feb 20, 2018 07:35pm
Nice
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Rmk Feb 20, 2018 07:55pm
Congratulations and be proud of your culture and heritage and don’t ape the west.
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Khawaja Feb 20, 2018 09:21pm
@ziauddin How ?
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raju Feb 20, 2018 10:54pm
haha .. joke will we be able to see anything more than eyes ?
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raju Feb 20, 2018 10:55pm
@Rmk wat culture.. these are tribes which landed a fortune due to oil nothing more ?
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Honesty Feb 21, 2018 12:19am
It's a joke.
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pathanoo Feb 21, 2018 12:35am
I hope that their faces would be uncovered, at least. Good Work, MBS.
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BRR Feb 21, 2018 03:19am
Right let us have a "battle of the burqas". What an achievement!
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Khan Feb 21, 2018 06:45am
Prince Salman is ruining Arabia with his modernization by making women becoming more free. What next, women would be allowed to wear skirts?
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Leoman Feb 21, 2018 07:01am
Modernity should not have come through fashionable dresses or beautiful faces and appearances rather it should have come through wide spread authentic education based upon preparation of young generation with quality mind and thinking. The realisation should have been produced through education that women are equal human being s and they must be respected for their talent and ability and they must also contribute towards the development of the country and the people with their capabilities. Let's hope for the best anyways.
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joe Feb 21, 2018 07:15am
Snail pace but congrats
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SK Feb 21, 2018 08:54am
@Rmk - My friend, the idea of having a "fashion week" in itself is "aping the west". Ever thought where the tradition came from? Anyway, let's see how they go about "defining" or "inventing" (?) their culture. It will be fun to watch ..
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