by Paris — Elie Saab is adding another event to his busy fashion calendar. The Lebanese designer will conduct an experiential excursion during the Riyadh Season on November 13.
Saab is creating an entertainment event called “1001 Seasons of Elie Saab” – a nod to the ‘1001 Nights’ collection of Arabic folktales – which will include a runway presentation and several performances. It will be broadcast on the MBC television network across the Gulf region, and will be streamed globally on the brand’s social platforms.
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The show will “put together fashion and entertainment,” said Elie Saab, chief executive officer of Elie Saab Jr. He compared it to a film translated into a live experience.
The show takes the form of a series of interconnected tables showcasing Saab’s designs, with around 300 looks on display on sets, interspersed with live performances. The CEO could not yet reveal who will take the stage, but he promised some “capital A” A-list talent and longtime friends of the brand.
British TV and live events producer Done+Dusted, the company behind the Victoria’s Secret fashion shows and the Academy Awards, is on board to direct. Carine Roitfeld will style the show, and Piergiorgio Del Moro will handle the casting.
Saab and Saab Jr. serving as executive producers on the show, under the creative direction of Saab.
The event is an anniversary celebration for Saab, celebrating its 45th year in business as well as its return to Saudi Arabia, which was its first market outside of Lebanon. Hosting the event in Saudi Arabia has emotional significance, he said, as well as a desire to raise awareness of the cultural change currently taking place in the kingdom.
“These are people who believed in Elie Saab from day one, the women of Saudi Arabia. I want to show the Saudi woman how modern she is, because the world press does not know this side of Saudi Arabia,” Saab told WWD in an interview. “Because she is a woman with very refined taste, with enormous purchasing power, and all the fashion houses of the world can agree with what I am saying.”
He hopes to show the country from a “different angle,” he said.
“On all the developments and all the work they are doing for Saudi Arabia and the new global image, I think we, the house, are with them on this project. It is very important for us and for them,” he said.
Saab has called the overall plan for the brand a “new way of communicating” through the clothes, which will include its signature gowns, caps, coats as well as a jewelry head with a modern approach and attention to the Arabic codes.
The company is working with the support of His Excellency Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the country’s general entertainment authority, to bring the event to life.
“Riyadh Season has been a key driver of change in the kingdom,” Saab Jr. said. “[The show] We will reinforce the idea of this change by presenting empowered women in this collection, which is what we represent. … The exhibition will also translate the evolution that is happening in the kingdom.”
Riyadh Season is a series of entertainment and sports events scheduled during the winter, launched in 2019 as an initiative to promote the economic and cultural development of the kingdom. The Saab event will be held at The Venue, newly built for cultural events.
Saab Jr. ensures that the company had full creative freedom on the performance. “There is a lot of trust between us in the partnership, because they know that we are finally a global brand that is returning to the region. They know that we understand both worlds very well.”
Saab Jr notes that the country is actively courting events and celebrities that put it on the world stage, such as the Red Sea Film Festival and its own fashion week in the capital, and hopes to continue to to establish such a large scale. Saudi Arabia’s place on the fashion map.
“The Fashion Commission is driving very positive change and is working on the foundation and the fundamentals it takes to build a fashion ecosystem,” he said.
The Elie Saab brand has already expanded into interiors and real estate projects outside of its core business of fashion, fragrances and accessories, and the company sees the event as the next evolution of the Elie Saab name, as well as its launch . of the overall trajectory in the fashion industry to create events and experiences.
“It’s more than a show, it’s an event that hasn’t been done before in the world of fashion. It is a new tool to present fashion…it will increase visibility [and] the value of the house. He will enter another dimension of success,” said Saab.
The show will be less about “pushing a product” than creating a new form of marketing. “Our goal is not to overwhelm with different messages, and at the end, the show includes the Saab group, which already has those main pillars secured in its portfolio,” said Saab Jr.
Globally, the company is moving forward with its retail expansion plan for additional store openings worldwide.
“Our [retail] the implementation was carefully studied to meet the demand we know is there for the brand,” he said of the target locations.
They are currently planning an opening in Kuwait for January 2025, which will complete Saab’s presence in the Gulf nations. Two to three planned openings are planned for key US markets over the next two years.
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