Milia Maroun, the avant- garde Arabian fashion designer, has been selected by Abu Dhabi Fashion Week and Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana as the first ever Arabian designer to show at the Milano Fashion Week. Never before has an Arabian designer been invited to participate in what is widely regarded as the most important fashion week on the international fashion calendar.
Milia M will be the first in what is expected to be a wave of new Arabian designers seeking to take their collections into the international fashion markets. Building on the excitement generated by the launch of the Abu Dhabi Fashion Week, the collaboration between Maven Corporate (creators of the Abu Dhabi Fashion Week) and Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (creators of the Milano Fashion Week) is set to revolutionise the fashion industry in the region.
Alice Teeuwen, President of Maven, was enthused by this relationship: “By working together to showcase emerging Arabian designers alongside world famous Italian maestros in both Milano and Abu Dhabi, we aim to bring the amazing creativity in the region to the attention of the international fashion world. This is a wonderful opportunity for Milia M to demonstrate to the world the innovation, freshness and unique style of Arabian fashion.”
From the 16-23 February, the eyes of the world’s fashion industry focus on Milano Fashion Week, where over hundred of Italian and International top designers come together to showcase the latest trends on the catwalk. Thousands of celebrities, VIPs, buyers, media, and fashion industry executives are part of the fashion extravaganza.
Whilst Milia M will be the first, and only, Arabian designer showing in Milano this year, the Abu Dhabi Fashion Week will showcase the ‘next wave’ of Arabian designers hoping to make their mark in the international industry.
A spokesman for ALDAR Properties, the Foundation Sponsor of Abu Dhabi Fashion Week, said: “We are proud to support the Abu Dhabi Fashion Week. What we see in Abu Dhabi and in Milano is wonderful: good for the fashion industry, good for the United Arab Emirates and good for Abu Dhabi. Our aim at ALDAR is to help the process of ‘Building the Nation’ and this is about more than simply bricks and mortar, it is about creativity, energy and realizing potential…and the Abu Dhabi Fashion Week shares this focus.”
Alongside them at the Abu Dhabi Fashion Week will be a number of leading international designers seeking to strengthen their position in the rapidly growing fashion markets of the Middle East, Africa and South Asia.
“It is important that this is seen as a two-way street” said Giulia Pirovano, Director General of Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana, “Arabian designers coming to Milano and Italian designers coming to Abu Dhabi. There are great opportunities on both sides. We are very excited by these developments.”
Milia M’s show is scheduled to take place on Friday the 22nd of February at 13:45 hrs at Sala Spiga and has received tremendous interest from international media and buyers. On her part, Milia M, spoke about her excitement about Milan and said: “I am indeed very proud to be the first Arabian designer in Milano, with this comes a great responsibility and I’m focusing on ensuring that my collection meets the expectations of this discerning and sophisticated audience”.
The Abu Dhabi Fashion Week is supported by the government and many of the leading corporations of Abu Dhabi which include ALDAR Properties and Mubadala.
