Why You Need To Pay Attention To What Saudi Arabia Is Doing In Fashion

When one thinks of Saudi Arabia, oil is probably one of the first things that come to mind. And rightly so. In March 1938 a large amount of oil was discovered, and these natural resources made the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia one of the richest countries in the world. Even though it has been eighty-five years since the discovery of the oil, Saudi Arabia has not stopped producing it. And although the Kingdom aims to diversify and expand beyond these natural resources, it is moving into other areas such as fashion, through initiatives such as Saudi Vision 2030.

Led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, this vision aims to strengthen public sectors, such as culture, tourism, health, education, infrastructure, and recreation, with measures to increase non-oil gross domestic product (GDP) from sixteen percent to fifty percent- and increased the private sector’s contribution to GDP from forty percent to sixty-five percent, according to the Saudi Fashion Commission.

Saudi Fashion Commission

Prior to 2020, there was almost no fashion ecosystem in Saudi Arabia. But the creation of the Fashion Commission, led by Burak akmak is progressing rapidly and is expected to contribute 1.4 percent to the Kingdom’s GDP, about $12.5 billion in gross value added. We have built the fashion industry here in Saudi completely from scratch, said akmak.

akmak is the former dean of fashion at the Parsons School of Design at The New School in New York City. Working passionately to accelerate the Saudi fashion ecosystem, akmak is open about the ups and downs. The biggest challenge is obtaining market data information. It’s important that commissions, as well as designers and businesses across the value chain, can make data-driven decisions, he continues.

Stakeholders, investors, the Saudi government and the fashion industry needed data to help the Kingdom’s fashion sector thrive, but a lack of data led the Commission to produce their first data-driven report. We’ll be launching it on June 27 in Paris, right after Paris Fashion Week for men, and showing it in New York in October. Called The State of Fashion in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, this report will guide the industry, clearly outlining the themes of its performance and the scale of opportunities in Saudi, which we hope will support the growth of the sector. To complement this report, we also launched an online platform for stakeholders to engage with sector data. For the Commission, it is important for the Kingdom to have every opportunity, as akmak said, to develop as a high-value fashion value chain.

According to the Commission, fashion accounts for 1.8 percent (230,000 people) of the total Saudi workforce, of which fifty-two percent is female participation. All of this is in turn driven by wholesale and retail sales. The Saudi fashion industry attracts local talent, said Akmak. Saudi’s young population will ensure that enough talent is produced to supply a thriving workforce across all segments of the fashion value chain, as long as we inspire and invest in it.

It was announced in May and reported by Reuters that sixty-three percent of the Kingdom’s population of 32.3 million, are under thirty years of age. This left the Crown Prince needing to find a way to provide jobs to more than 10 million Saudis, hence Vision 2030. And this is where fashion can make a difference.

Most importantly, young Saudis are ambitious, and they are embracing all the opportunities that Vision 2030 offers them; and this reflects a decrease in the unemployment rate in Saudi. As part of the Saudis Vision 2030 plan, it aims to lower the unemployment rate to 7 percent, from the previous 11.6 percent, while also increasing women’s participation in the workforce to 30 percent from 22 percent, explained Akmak.

For akmak, as he oversees the ecosystem of designer, retail, development, production, apparel, footwear and jewelery for both traditional and modern fashion, he seems very optimistic about all the growth happening in the Kingdom. Working closely with the Ministry of Culture, they witnessed a boost in investment and building a strong regulatory framework. This is not an easy job but akmak strives to help those in the Saudi fashion ecosystem reach their full potential, while cultivating the Kingdom’s strong and rich fashion heritage.

The Saudi fashion scene is truly like no other, you only have to attend a Saudi event like the Saudi Cup to witness its originality and love of luxury and extravagance, blended with Saudi and contemporary heritage, he said.

100 Saudi Brands

Initiatives within the Commission such as Saudi 100 Brands are professional development programs that help emerging local talent reach their full potential. This talent ranges between the ages of twenty and seventy. Some are educated in international design schools and others are self-taught, but eighty-five percent of them are women.

One of the Saudi 100 Brands is contemporary ready-to-wear designer Mona Alshibil. A unique aspect of Saudi fashion is the abaya, the long, loose robe traditionally worn by women. Saudi designers have reimagined the abaya, turning the traditional black design into a fashion statement. We’ve modernized and experimented with different fabrics, cuts, colors and trims, creating a style that is timeless, versatile and modern, he says.

What sets Saudi designers apart from the rest is our vision, which is born from our past and heritage. We are ambitious, insisting on standing out in the field of fashion by showing the world our distinct and distinct designs that draw inspiration from the past of our Kingdom and the nature of its various regions, said Nour Al Dhahri, another designer from Saudi 100 Brands.

What makes his brand unique Shahd AlShehail, another designer from the first group of Saudi 100 Brands says, we are rooted in unique storytelling that references Saudi culture, and we have strong support from local expertise and artisans. This focus on craft and authenticity translates into unique designs and a brand experience like no other.”

The Saudi fashion ecosystem is spread across ten categories from footwear, to fragrances, ready-to-wear, simple, concepts, premium, demi-couture, bridal, handbags and jewelery. With more than five thousand hours of mentoring, as well as masterclasses and workshops conducted by industry leaders and experts, it gives one hundred brands the chance to shine on the world fashion stage at New York and Milan Fashion Weeks.

Since launching in June 2021, the 100 Saudi Brands initiative has received thousands of applicants, said akmak. And through this initiative, we managed to obtain data on the number and quality of fashion brands in Saudi Arabia. We recognize that the Kingdom has thousands of very impressive creative talents and most of them are undiscovered. It’s great to see designer talent being recognized both domestically and internationally.

French Fashion Race Institute

And just last month, the Commission teamed up with France’s renowned Franais de la Mode Institute, offering a course for emerging Saudi designers. Through two courses: the Executive certificate in fashion business program and the Fashion design program, designers have the opportunity to learn and develop in the industry. The previously mentioned courses started this month with thirty students studying marketing, business strategy, visual merchandizing, retail, and financial management. The final course starts on June 26^th and lasts until July 13th^thproviding twenty-four designers with cultural experience and technical know-how.

The course fees are borne by the Commission. And for those still in Saudi Arabia, there are twelve universities offering Bachelors, Masters, and PhD programs in fashion-related fields.

Other Initiatives

The Commission has other initiatives such as Fashion Futures, Elevate and Intermix Residency which strengthen the value chain of the Saudi fashion ecosystem, further strengthening the Kingdom’s place in the global fashion industry. The Commission has taken part in global events such as Expo 2020 in Dubai, Iron23 Exhibition in New York, White Milano exhibition, Red Sea International Film Festival, the Mohammed Ashi runway show in Paris, which will take place again during AW24 Haute Couture Week in July, and the Saudi Cup in Riyadh.

Saudi fashion is all about embracing traditional culture with their vision of modern elegance. The Saudi aesthetic is structured with a wealth of intricacies of embroidery-like details, says Breck Graham, a stylist who has worked with leading fashion brands from Estee Lauder to Karl Lagerfeld.

In addition to launching this month’s State of Fashion Report, the Commission will continue projects this year that will strengthen their value chain. Our new Product Development Studio will open at the end of 2023. Based in Riaydh, the space is equipped with state-of-the-art technologies such as 3D knitting machines and laser cutting machines. The production space will allow designers to produce prototypes and samples to accelerate market entry, said akmak.

The Commission will also host its fourth Swap Shop, and they have signed a memorandum of understanding with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology to support a center for research and development of sustainable materials and textile technology. They will continue to champion women’s leadership through their Elevate initiative, working with mentors: Lorenz Baumer, Laure Heriard Dubreuil, Christophe de Pous and Valerie Hermann. In September, their Saudi 100 Brands will return to White Milano, and their Fashion Future event will return in October.

Clearly fashion is a driver of the Saudi economy, and is in a very strong position with a pipeline of talented young people interested in learning and applying their skills in the emerging Saudi fashion scene, akmak concluded.