By Aisha Aslam
Shoes & Drama’s very own Marriam Mossalli was honored with an invite to speak at the Arab World Luxury Conference 2014 held on 2nd-3rd June 2014, at the Westin Mina Siyahi, Dubai.
The Arab World Luxury Conference was a phenomenal success, with more than 130 experts in attendance from the diverse fields of luxury automotives & services, tourism & hospitality, fashion, culture, art, jewelry & watches. Heterogeneous luxury brands from across the GCC gathered to share industry insights and information, and potential growth avenues for the future at the AWL Conference, which was organized by Mediaquest Corp. The two-day event included a number of different sessions, such as panel discussions, private breakout sessions and workshops by select authorities.
Marriam Mossalli representing her company Niche in the “Saudi Consumer” panel spoke about the evolution of luxury from the 1930’s to present day. Speaking about the first generation Saudi’s and Bedouins and the sequence of series that followed to the present day Millenial’s perception of luxury, Marriam reflected on the phenomenon of “luxury abroad”, as well as the “glocalized world” mainly attributed to the growing tenacles of social networks. She acutely highlighted the Oil Embargo acted as a catalyst for the fluctuating trends for luxury that later emerged in Saudi Arabia.
Marriam Mossalli also presented the billionaire report on behalf of Airbus for the Ultra High Net Worth Individuals Spending panel.
Amongst other in attendance from the domain of fashion were Nathalie Trad – Owner, Nathalie Trad Designs Fz-Llc, Lamia Asudari – Founder, Asudari, Rami Kadi – Designer & CEO of brand Rami Kadi.
Other key issues addressed at the forum included the Arab HNWIs’ concern with legacy and inheritance, stability and sustainability of family fortunes, provenance, philanthropy and the development of an active Arab “collectors’ community” for everything from high-end horology to contemporary art.
