There are a lot of individuals who throw about the term “serial entrepreneur,” but much fewer who can truly pull it off, let alone do it while simultaneously reaching two billion people.
If you’re looking for someone who fits the bill, look no further than zlem ahin Ertaş, the CEO and force behind Modest Fashion Week, which has held seven successful editions since its inception in 2014. She saw that modest fashion is and would continue to be a significant part of the business, so she began organizing events to promote its designers in Istanbul, where her firm, Think Fashion, is headquartered. From there, the initiative moved to London, Dubai, Jakarta, and Amsterdam. This week’s issue of Lucire previewed the upcoming Modest Fashion Show, which will take place in Riyadh from December 15th to the 17th.
Before we ever met Ertaş, we had heard of her event; the London one caused quite a stir in the western media. Thus, it was an honor to be invited to participate as a media partner (having previously served in such capacities in New Zealand, Kbenhavn, and San Francisco). Ertaş, the CEO, is approachable and passionate about modest fashion; she told Lucire that preparations for the Riyadh edition had been underway for some time and that Thursday would bring an exciting event featuring more than two dozen designers to the Saudi capital. She was careful to point out that modest dress is not a passing trend, but rather reflects the values and traditions of many people.
Though she earned her bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering in her native Turkey and her master’s degree in leadership from the European School of Economics in Italy, Ertaş is no stranger to the demands of media and how to get word of her event out there. But fashion has always been present, whether it was during a two-year stint at the Istanbul Moda Akademisi or during almost two years of work in textiles.
Ertaş, who started the first online show dedicated to hijab fashion while working in marketing for Modanisa, went on to found e-commerce and modest-clothing businesses. Her Think Fashion umbrella includes the likes of the Turkish Made Co. for manufacturing and sourcing as well as the E Tu Creative Agency for advertising and public relations. Several other publications, including Vogue Italia, Vogue Arabia, Khaleej Times, The National, and Middle East Eye, have covered her as well.
The inaugural Dubai Modest Fashion Week was hailed as a huge success. After successful runs in Istanbul and London, Dubai welcomed designers from over 20 nations for its first Modest Fashion Week on December 8-9. The two-day event, which took place in the city’s renowned Burk Park, included a jam-packed schedule, with 40 separate fashion presentations, in addition to several seminars, discussions, and fashion and art exhibits.
H.E. Sheikha Hend Faisal Al Qassemi, Arab superstars Diana Haddad and Hisham El Hajj, and Bollywood actress Gauahar Khan were among the 100 celebrities and influencers that attended the festivities. Launched in Dubai for the first time, Modest Fashion Week included runway displays by designers such as Rasit Bagzibagli, Muslima Wear, Selma Sari, Safiya Abdallah of Dulce by Safiya, Zaskia Sungkar, Norma Hauri, Ria Miranda, ETU, and Annah Hariri.
Huw Roman Tokyo of Japan, Fllumae of the United States, Mizan of Germany, Yours Truly of Canada, and Sumayya & SSS of Indonesia were just a few of the foreign designers that showed their wares. And a high-end online boutique for tasteful modest clothing The winners of The Modist’s Emerging Modest Fashion Designer Awards was honored at an event. Think Fashion and Red Connect collaborated with Emaar, Modanisa, MBM International, Dubai Culture, the Dubai Islamic Economy and Development Centre, and the Rewaq Ousha Bint Hussein-Cultural Center to put on Dubai Modest Fashion Week.
