London, 18 April 2017: Twenty-six designers from around the world showcased their new lines at the Modanisa London Modest Fashion Week, which ended on Sunday. Sponsors Modanisa – the world’s biggest online modest fashion retailer – brought the glitz and glamour of its concept to the British capital after hosting the hugely successful first-ever Modest Fashion Week in Istanbul last year.
Tickets for all the fashion shows, held at the iconic Olympia, West London, sold out weeks ago. Under the tagline “embrace the grace of fashion”, emerging and established designers presented their new collections on the catwalk. They included British labels Pillar, SaiqaMajeed, and Farrah Naaz, Turkey’s Mayovera, Selma Sarı, and Refka, the USA’s Fllumae, Malaysia’s Nourish Kareem and Aidijuma, and Helena Latifi of Norway.
Halima Aden – the world’s first hijab-wearing model – opened MLMFW, stepping on to the runway wearing a peach blush abiye (evening dress) and hijab by MinelAşk (Turkey). The Somali-American, who recently appeared on the catwalk for Kanye West and Max Mara, was mobbed by fans after her catwalk shows eager to talk to and have their pictures taken with the rising star.
Franka Soeria, a co-creator of Modest Fashion Week, said: “The shows illustrated how diverse modest fashion style is. Some designers were heavily defined by cultural influences, while others fused East-West elements, producing modern daywear and glamorous evening dresses that adhere to Islamic principles, yet appeal far beyond.”
British hijabi model Mariah Idrissi attended the shows, as did globally renowned modest fashion bloggers LeenaAsad (USA), Zeruj and Sena Sever (Turkey), each with half-a-million followers on social media. Nabiilabee was also at MLMFW. A top UK influencer, Nabiilabee’s new BBC documentary ‘New York Hijabis’, presented with former Girls Aloud singer Nicola Roberts, aired last week.
Complementing the catwalk shows were panel talks featuring big names from the industry, stalls selling clothes and accessories to the public, and networking activities for designers, buyers and the media. The event programming was by Modanisa, supported by modest fashion consultants Özlem Şahin and Franka Soeria of Think Fashion and local partners the Muslim Lifestyle Show.
Following its first London Modest Fashion Week, Modanisa CEO KerimTüre said: “Modanisa exists to give more choice to women who prefer to wear modest fashion, allowing them to look elegant without compromising their beliefs.”
“London is one of the key fashion capitals of the world, so it was important for us to bring our Modest Fashion Week concept here. The fact that the catwalk shows sold out weeks ago illustrates the demand for them. Thank you to everyone who came and took part.”
Modest fashion is a relatively new but thriving sector. The 2015-2016 State of the Global Islamic Economy report valued the industry at $230 bn globally, which is predicted to rise to $327 bn by 2019.
About Modest Fashion Week,
www.londonmodest.com
This ground-breaking concept is the brainchild of pioneering e-tailerModanisa and Think Fashion. As the world’s largest online portal for modest fashion, Modanisa wanted to create a physical platform for retailers, modest fashion influencers and tastemakers to come together and showcase the latest trends. The inaugural event took place in Istanbul in May 2016 to great acclaim. London became the second destination for Modest Fashion Week, with the intention of holding similar events in major centres of modest fashion around the world.
About Modanisa, www.modanisa.com
A start-up established in 2011, Modanisa.com is the world’s first online fashion and shopping website for women embracing a modest dressing style. The site offers six different languages, serving 9 million visitors each month with sales to 103 countries. Customers can find over 30,000 items from more than 300 brands, ranging from casual wear through to evening dresses, sports and swimwear, and accessories, which are in keeping with Islamic principles while also adhering and shaping latest fashion trends.
