The environment in the Middle East, especially within Dubai, is ripe for becoming the next fashion destination of the world. The city has its eyes set on the multi-billion-dollar-a-year global fashion industry, which is currently dominated by the US, Europe and Japan. It has already surged ahead of the rest of the Emirates countries in fashion-retail spending. As of 2016, Dubai was ranked the 21st most expensive city in the world and the most expensive in the Middle East; according to a February WWD report, Arab consumers spent $320 billion on luxury fashion in 2016, and that number is expected to grow to $490 billion by 2019.
Despite all of the recent attention Dubai has received from the high-fashion sector, it's nothing new; the Middle East has always sustained a luxury market, but only recently has e-commerce become a significant part of the equation. As of now, fashion and e-commerce are synonymous with each other, and form part of a burgeoning market in Dubai.
Fashion Forward took over the Dubai Design District and grew its audience from invite-only to everyone who loves fashion. A four-day celebration of style, featuring runway shows, presentations, exhibitions, talks, shopping, music and film, this event is a showcase of the finest forms of fashion which exemplify the love of dressing up and the love of brands.
Look at fashion from any era and you get a unique insight into society at that time. It has to capture the zeitgeist - sometimes reflecting it and sometimes helping create it. Dubai and high-street fashion have that effortless, seamless connection which is mainly because the people there love to experiment and live life fashionably.
So is there an actual pool of creative talent in Dubai, in order for the city to become a fashion capital? Talent is a subjective term, since ultimately it's the customer who decides. Nevertheless, whereas designers in the West sometimes seem too concerned with designing for themselves as oppose to their clientele, the Middle East designers hit the nail on the hat in this department. They manage to deliver wearable, not overly conceptual fashion, local women actually want to buy.
Dubai is a combination of savoir-faire and creativity, a perfect balance between form and function, sophistication and simplicity. The local industry is still evolving, but the trends point towards an influence from French Fashion. Localisation is key to success in this diverse region but it is Dubai’s potential to get involved with high-stakes businesses that makes it one of the most internationally-desirable hubs of fashion destinations in the world.
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