Arab Fashion Week returns to Dubai Design District in October

Arab Fashion Week has confirmed that its six-day event, held in partnership with Dubai Design District (d3), will open on October 10, featuring more than 35 designers from the Middle East and North Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Americas.

The showcase, running from October 10 to 15, will feature women’s autumn/winter 2022/23 couture and spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear collections from an international line-up, alongside roundtable talks and activations.

The event will kick off with a special event commemorating Barbie, unveiling a global capsule collection with Lebanese designer Jean Louis Sabaji, the first Arab designer ever to work with the iconic doll.

Other highlights will include UAE-based eco-conscious brand The Giving Movement debuting its new clothing line FiftyMade, while Atelier Forger will take centre stage as the first Syrian label to showcase at Arab Fashion Week, and Paris-based label Weinsanto will return for the fifth time, highlighting the growing relevance of Dubai to global brands.

In total, the schedule features a mix of emerging and established designers representing 23 countries, including debuts from as far afield as Mexico, Nicaragua, Thailand, Malaysia and Ukraine.

Khadija Al Bastaki, vice president of Dubai Design District (d3), said in a statement: “We are proud, with our strategic partner the Arab Fashion Council, to announce the line-up for this autumn’s Arab Fashion Week, which will be by far, the largest edition to date with more than 35 designers set to hit the runway over the six-day event – from all corners of the world.

“It is very much our mission at Dubai Design District to elevate the creative ecosystem here in Dubai and the wider region with opportunities to showcase, tap into new stakeholders and audiences, and – most importantly – rethink the regular. Arab Fashion Week continues to be at the very heart of our regional fashion industry while also taking the global narrative on all that is happening here in our region to new heights, further growing Dubai’s reputation as a global fashion hub.”