DDFC welcomes designers to their first community event with industry experts to outline the
importance of designers in building a solid business case for growth
Dubai, United Arab Emirates - Wednesday, December 10th 2014 [ME NewsWire]
The Dubai Design and Fashion Council yesterday brought together a wealth of design and
fashion industry experts and top tier journalists for its inaugural community event, at the
Fairmont Hotel in Dubai.
CEO of the Council, Nez Gebreel welcomed guests to the pop up urban majlis and officially
announced the council’s mandate, its promise and purpose and gave an overview of its
upcoming initiatives over the coming year.
The Council’s purpose is to ‘make Dubai the emerging design capital of the world’, an objective
that will be achieved by delivering on their promise to ‘create global opportunity and invigorate
a world-class design community in Dubai’.
International fashion designer Roland Mouret made a special appearance to talk about the
importance of having a solid business case and tips on how to thrive in the design industry,
drawing on his own experience of establishing a brand and gaining international recognition.
This is an exciting time for Mouret, whose celebrity fans include Emma Stone, Carey Mulligan,
and Sandra Bullock. In June, he will relaunch a revamped digital site and open his first New York
City shop — on Madison Avenue This is an exciting time for Mouret, whose celebrity fans
include Emma Stone, Carey Mulligan, and Sandra Bullock. In June, he will relaunch a revamped
digital site and open his first New York City shop — on Madison Avenue This is an exciting
time for Mouret, whose celebrity fans include Emma Stone, Carey Mulligan, and Sandra Bullock.
In June, he will relaunch a revamped digital site and open his first New York City shop — on
Madison Avenue Mouret’s designs are favoured by global celebrities including Emma Stone,
Carey Mulligan and Sandra Bullock and in June this year, he launched his first New York City
shop on Madison Avenue and has a flagship store in prestigious Carlos Place, London.
A panel featuring Nez Gebreel, Cyril Zammit, Fair Director for Design Days Dubai, Zayan
Ghandour, Lebanese designer and owner of Sauce boutiques and Roland Mouret followed the
presentations where they discussed the potential of Dubai’s design industry, challenges they
have each faced and the benefits of being based in Dubai.
Dr Amina Al Rustamani, Chairperson of the Council said: “To ensure sustainability of our
creative industries, we are creating an environment that would produce and nurture future
business leaders and entrepreneurs. The Dubai Design and Fashion Council aims to provide a
framework for this environment. Furthermore, by ensuring we are helping to build a thriving
creative ecosystem, we will be able to draw the leading regional and international operators to
be based here. We want to see others join them to facilitate collaboration that in turn, will help
emerging designers grow into international players in their own right.”
Nez Gebreel, CEO of the Council Commented: “The establishment of the Dubai Design and
Fashion Council signals a strong commitment by the country’s leadership towards making
Dubai the emerging design capital of the world. There is a tremendous amount of creativity and
positive energy in the region’s industry and we are here to help support and mentor these
upcoming designers to realise their potential and achieve their dreams.”
“We are here to create global opportunity and invigorate a world-class design community in
Dubai. We want to establish a framework for the industry, one that will position Dubai as an
international hub for design, offering excellent infrastructure for brands to make the most of the
significant consumer base here. This is our promise, and we will do everything in our power to
make it happen.”
Roland Mouret said: “I am delighted to be here in Dubai at the first event held by the Dubai
Design and Fashion Council. For designers such as myself, Dubai is a key market due to the
vast number of consumers and their significant spending power, therefore the Council’s
presence is vital. It has been really interesting to meet the next generation of designers in Dubai
and hear their plans on how to achieve their dreams. I was in their position once and I feel a
sense of responsibility to pass on my knowledge and any help I can provide, to those looking
to follow a career in design. It is a challenging industry, you need thick skin and a solid
business model, as well as talent and creativity in design itself.
“What Dubai, and the Council are aiming to achieve in cultivating and nurturing their design
industry is exciting and ambitious but definitely achievable. Design is about organic growth, it
is about following your emotions and being inspired every day.”
Following a decree announced by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai
and Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE last year, the Design and Fashion Council was
established to raise the profile of the Emirate as a regional and global destination for design and
fashion.
The Design and Fashion Council Board members were selected by The Executive Council as
decreed by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and
Chairman of Dubai Executive Council. Chaired by Dr Amina Al Rustamani, Group CEO of Tecom
Investments, the board members consist of fifteen individuals who represent a mix of key
stakeholder groups, including government, academic, not-for profit and private sector experts.
Board members were selected due to their leadership, experience and proven track record to
deliver industry level initiatives.
The members include Laila Suhail, CEO at Dubai Festival and Retail Establishments who acts as
Vice Chairman to the Council; Mohammad AlShael, Executive Director of Commercial Licensing
at Department of Economic Development; Robert D. Booth, CEO of Real Estate at EMAAR
Properties; Iyad Malas, CEO of Majed Al Futtaim Holding; Khalid Al Tayer, CEO – Retail of Al
TayerGroup; Ashok Sawlani, Former Chairman of & Current Honorary, - Member of Managing
Committee at Dubai Textile City; Farida Abdulla Kambar AlAwadi, President of Association of
Professional Interior Designers in UAE (APID) and Managing Director or Cinmar Design; Reem
Acra, Founder and CEO of Reem Acra; Ali Jaber, Dean of Communication and Information
Studies at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Communication at American University of
Dubai; Patrick Chalhoub, CEO of Chalhoub Group; Raja Trad, CEO Leo Burnett and Publicis
Group of Companies MENA; Gassan Harfouche, Group CEO of Middle East Communication
Network (MCN); Nisha Jagtiani, Director of Landmark Group and Azza Fahmy, Chairwoman &
Chief Designer of Azza Fahmy Jewellery.
ENDS
About DDFC
The Dubai Design & Fashion Council was established by Dubai Government under DTMFZA
to position the Emirate as global hub for Design and Fashion for the region and to nurture local
talent. It is a not-for-profit organisation that aims to further the interests of Dubai’s fashion
industry and its designer businesses by harnessing collective knowledge, experience and
resources of the industry in the Middle East.
Formed in 2014, the DDFC is Chaired by Dr Amina Al Rustamani with CEO Nez Gabreel
overseeing day to day management. It leads the industry through creative influence and
strategically repositioning of the design industry in Dubai so that it may become the emerging
design capital of the world.
The DDFC has five strategic pillars; attract companies and promote Dubai, develop trade and
tourism, nurture talent, initiate industry research and impact assessment and develop and
enhance policy and regulation relating to Dubai’s design industry. The DDFC will nurture and
support designers through each stages of their development through its support initiatives and
achievement of each of the five pillars.
Contacts
Nicola Hooper, Bell Pottinger
+971 55 8862254
Mark Stobbs, Marketing Director, Dubai Design and Fashion Council –
+971 52 9987 467
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