Luxury: The November issue

After the port explosion in Beirut on August 4, Lebanese fashion designer Zuhair Murad posted photos and video clips of the destruction in his 11-storey Gemmayze atelier, writing: “My heart is broken. Can’t stop crying. The efforts of years went in a moment.”

The next day, still reeling from what had happened, Murad received the first copy of a beautifully produced book celebrating his work, from publisher Assouline. “I received the book a day later, in the middle of the collapsed building,” recalls Murad from his Paris showroom – an elegant 18th-century town house in which he spends much of his time during fashion show season. “I considered it an optimistic sign that no matter what happens, beauty and talent will never fade.” 

The arrival of the book, which is part of Assouline’s Legends collection, and is punctuated by glowing quotes from friends and celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, Celine Dion and Ciara, provided a morale boost after the trauma of the blast. Murad knew of their inclusion, having worked on the book the previous year, but reading them again alongside the sumptuous photographs of his haute couture gowns was, he admits, perfect timing. It imbued him with “a new spirit and outlook”, he says.

The book, titled Zuhair Murad, was written by noted author and fashion critic Alexander Fury and contains a foreword by Babeth Djian, founder of international fashion magazine Numéro. As Djian says, it invites us into Murad’s world, which is “full of grace and poetry”. It explores the creativity, craftsmanship and inspiration behind his seductive dresses. “Couture is a place where I can allow my imagination to take centre stage, and I am able to create pieces that reflect who I am as a designer and, more importantly, as an artist,” Murad says in the book. 

The luxurious tome praises his craft – the dreamy draping, his hourglass silhouettes and lavish embroideries – and also the women who don his dresses everywhere from the catwalk and the red carpet, to the stage and on their wedding day. Featuring in all their glory are Lopez, Nicole Kidman, Kylie Minogue and actress Deepika Padukone at her wedding reception, wearing a red custom couture gown inspired by Murad’s autumn/winter 2018 Night in St Petersburg collection. 

Interspersed amongst their imagery, moodboards and backstage snapshots, are designs photographed in inspirational settings such as the Roman ruins of Heliopolis in Baalbek. This is the area where Murad grew up in the Bekaa Valley, and the images illustrate how the designer’s roots are still firmly planted in Lebanon’s soil. 

Although Murad has a showroom in Paris, he insists he would never abandon his homeland as a consequence of what has happened. “Lebanon is my country, and this is where I started,” he says with passion. “It will always be my base. Nothing compares to this vivid capital, from its people, its nature, and its landscape and architectural heritage.” The city nourished his talent, “so of course, I will rebuild my headquarters here”, he says.

There is one particularly touching image of Murad, surrounded by the artisans from his atelier (men and women, many of whom have been with him since the very beginning) in front of his Beirut headquarters in Charles Helou Avenue, taken before the blast. “We are a family business and most of our employees have been with us for as long as I can remember. We always considered them as part of our family and have shared with them lots of events throughout the many years.”

His staff of 200 had thankfully left the building only 10 minutes before the explosion and were safe, to Murad’s relief. However, he lost everything else: clients’ couture pieces and bridal gowns, the company’s 20-year archive and his art collection were all wiped out. 

But the tragedy pulled them all together. “I was so emotional when I saw many coming in the next morning for moral support, asking to help, removing the rubble… everyone felt so hurt and concerned by this dramatic situation.” The headquarters, he says, “was their home as much as it was mine”.

For decades, Lebanon has played a pioneering role in the region’s fashion industry. The disaster, however, came at a time when the design sector was already struggling, having been hit by rampant inflation that caused the Lebanese pound to lose about 80 per cent of its value since October last year. Many designers’ businesses suffered even more once the coronavirus pandemic started to dampen both local and international demand.

The fashion community rallied to support each other and their city, though. Murad ran a fundraising project for a month, with his Rise from the Ashes T-shirt campaign photographed on celebrities including Dion, Youssra, Cyrine Anour and fellow designer Karen Wazen. 

There was also international support from industry bodies such as the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode in Paris, where Murad is an Invited Member of the official haute couture catwalk. The designer himself has received many messages of compassion: “People sympathise with the Lebanese in general, fashion industry or not,” he says.

Lebanese designers are known for their entrepreneurial allure, creativity, dynamism and resilience. This drive ensured Murad quickly picked up the pieces and found a new temporary address outside the city within a week, where the atelier will be located for the next year. “The move was quite a change for all of us,” he admits, “especially given the main purpose behind the design of the Zuhair Murad HQ had been to create a French ambiance similar to the one in Paris. Our offices were not typical offices. I am now disoriented, especially given the space does not reflect the brand spirit, even though it is massive with several facilities. Unfortunately, it is not home …” 

The team had to move quickly because so many of the orders had been destroyed, and yet clients were still counting on them to supply their wedding dresses and couture outfits. Murad had completed his spring/summer 2021 ready-to-wear collection, half in Paris and half in Beirut, weeks before the explosion. He’s introduced more daywear than before, with a 1980s black and white silhouette, all ruffles and strong shoulders, which segued into evening dresses printed with exotic blooms. This survived, as has a wedding capsule collection he has just shown in New York. He is predicting a wedding boom in 2021 as countries hopefully return to some form of normality.

He is described in the book as one of the best ambassadors of fashion in the Arab world. Nevertheless, the trauma of the past year has given him pause to rethink his business strategy, and adapting to a new market will be challenging under current conditions in Lebanon. “I think with the Covid-19 pandemic and the international crisis, we all need to slow down the expansion of our businesses."

His goal now is to minimise the damage, and to restart on a new footing with a new strategy. “At the beginning of 2020, we were planning lots of projects, collaborations and developments. We have now decided to wait for better days and reschedule them. I suppose,” he adds, “this ‘stand still’ period will be the case for the entire fashion community.” 

Zuhair Murad - Assouline Legends Collection, $195,www.assouline.com

Essential tech

From classic turntables to sunglasses that double as headphones, some gadgets to get you in the groove

Beogram 4000c Recreated

Bang & Olufsen has revisited a classic with the Beogram 4000c Recreated Limited Edition. The turntable, originally introduced in the early 1970s, is the first product to be released in the company’s new Classics initiative, which will restore and reimagine old favourites to demonstrate Bang & Olufsen’s commitment to longevity. 

“In the world of consumer electronics, most products are regarded as disposable commodities. At Bang & Olufsen, our products are built to stand the test of time. That is what differentiates us as a brand, what the Beogram 4000c so beautifully embodies and what we want to build on in the future,” says Mads Kogsgaard Hansen, who leads the initiative. 

Bang & Olufsen sourced 95 units of the Beogram 4000 series turntable and brought them back to the same facility where they were first created nearly five decades ago. The turntables were disassembled, inspected, cleaned and new parts added where necessary, by a team of skilled engineers. Each component has been cleaned and new parts added where needed. The Beogram 4000c Recreated Limited Edition builds on the look and feel of the original turntable, but the aluminium has been polished and anodised in a warmer champagne tone, and is now surrounded by a handcrafted solid oak frame. 

Price on request, www.bang-olufsen.com

LV Horizon earphones

Louis Vuitton has unveiled a new set of Horizon earphones, created in collaboration with Virgil Abloh. The new design consists of a matte black acetate body with a neon green Monogram flower motif. Housing 10 millimetre Beryllium drivers and weighing 9 grams each, the earphones feature silicon ear tips and fit wings, and at their longest point, measure 28.3mm.

Omnidirectional MEMS technology enables the user to take calls, with two microphones per earphone, while additional features include play/pause, skip forward/skip back, ambient listening and active noise cancellation. Bluetooth 5.0 provides connectivity to a distance of more than 30 metres. A sandblasted, stainless steel charging case features a lid made from sapphire glass, with Monogram flowers and neon green lines.

$1,252, www.louisvuitton.com

Bose Frames

Bose has introduced three new Frames, which combine the style and protective qualities of premium sunglasses with the functionality of headphones.

The durable, lightweight, flexible Frames Tempo are specifically engineered for outdoor workouts. They can fit under most protective helmets, and are sweat, weather, scratch and shatter-resistant, with up to eight hours of battery life. The Frames Tenor and Soprano, meanwhile, are intended for everyday use. All feature Bose’s proprietary Open Ear Audio technology, with the smallest, thinnest Bose speaker systems ever made. The technology is discreetly embedded into each arm, with no visible screws, seams or perforations. The new Frames have polarised lenses, blocking 99 per cent of UV rays. They wirelessly connect to your phone to stream music, take and make calls, and use your personal assistant. 

Dh1,049 ($285), www.bose.ae

PowerShot Zoom

Canon Europe has released the PowerShot Zoom, a palm-sized, lightweight, 12-megapixel camera. The portable, monocular-style fixed lens device is capable of full HD video and super-zoom, with 100mm, 400mm and a digitally extended 800mm zoom options. Weighing only 145 grams, the unique single lens design enables users to shoot quality still and video imagery without the need for heavy equipment. Five accessible buttons enable control with one hand, while a simplified menu display makes the PowerShot Zoom simple to operate. With an advanced Optical Image Stabiliser, it creates steady, sharp images, and has a generous battery life.

$£299.99 ($389), www.cannon.com

HomePod Mini

Apple’s new HomePod Mini acts as a speaker and smart home assistant, while offering built-in privacy and a striking, compact design. Standing 3.3 inches tall, the device comes in white and space grey versions.

Multiple HomePod Mini speakers can work together to stream music or podcasts to different rooms, in sync. It responds to simple voice commands, so Siri can turn off the lights, change the temperature or lock the doors. Meanwhile, a new Intercom feature offers a quick and easy way for family members to connect with each other at home, using different pods.

Additional features include Ambient Sounds, such as rain, the rush of a stream or the crackle of a fire; and Find My, which will help locate misplaced iPhones, iPads, iPods, Macs or Apple Watches, by playing a sound to pinpoint their location.

Best of all, the HomePod Mini supports Apple’s plan to have net zero climate impact across its entire business, including manufacturing supply chains and all product life cycles, by 2030. It utilises 99 per cent recycled rare earth elements, and the mesh fabric is made with more than 90 per cent recycled plastic. 

Available from Monday, November 16, $99, www.apple.com

Male grooming is having a moment. Across the world, restrictions designed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, followed by a reticence to return to barbershops, has led to a boom in online demand for men’s grooming products.

A survey by Money.co.uk has revealed that online searches for “best beard trimmer to cut hair” have increased by 5,233 per cent, year on year. Meanwhile searches for “best skincare for men” and “how to shave your face” have gone up 175 per cent and 156 per cent, respectively, as men have started investing more time and energy in their daily grooming habits. 

Clearly, a quiet revolution is under way. Forced to take matters into their own hands, men are not only seeking out more information, they are also amping up their online grooming purchases.

Waseem Sendi, co-founder of the cult Saudi beard oil brand Diggn’It (a play on daggn, the Arabic word for beard), thinks there is a deeper reason for this. Part of the trio behind the wildly successful grooming range, which uses only traditional ingredients, Sendi is attuned to the complex rules that govern male grooming. For women, who are long used to indulging in lavish skin and hair routines at home, this DIY approach is ingrained. But for men, Sendi suggests, it’s a new emotional outlet.

“The only emotion allowed for men is anger. At age 12 we are told boys don’t cry, and to man up. This is a global issue. It’s how we raise our boys, to not have access to emotion, to not be a full person.

“There is now a beard community. It’s niche, but it’s a way for men to compliment each other, by saying: 'Nice beard, bro.' Men cannot say 'I like what you are wearing today', the way women can, so this allows men to compliment each other, and it starts to take away the restrictions we have put around what male interactions should be, and I think that’s good."

At Diggn’It, he explains, simple grooming rituals are viewed as having wider significance. “We are about sharing the idea of self-confidence for men and taking five minutes in the morning to feel good about themselves. He will walk out the door living that vibe, and we believe he is better for himself, his community and his environment. He is better prepared to be of service. And that’s what interests me.”

The idea that growing self-acceptance is behind the boom in male grooming products is echoed by Sam Kershaw, buying director at Mr Porter, the high-end online shopping portal for men. “We have observed that men are becoming increasingly confident in the grooming and skincare space as they educate themselves about the benefits of skincare health, while exploring brands that can be adopted into their everyday schedule.”

Catering to an entirely male audience, across more than 450 brands in 170 countries, Mr Porter has a uniquely global overview of the evolution of men’s browsing and purchasing habits.

“Historically, the male routine was quite limited – an eye cream, shaving gel, moisturiser and cleanser – but over the years, we’ve seen that our customers are interested in investing in a five-step routine and experimenting with anti-ageing products, concealers and oils to round out their daily regime,” Kershaw explains. “Skincare remains one of our bestselling grooming categories on Mr Porter and within this, oils, serums and treatment products such as face masks and peels from science-based, results-driven brands have been growing in popularity.”

Those who live in the Gulf will be familiar with the region’s rich barbershop culture, and the ritual of having a biweekly shave or facial. Born from practicality, the barbershop has evolved into a social space for men. However, even as the culture continues to grow, the knowledge underpinning it risks being lost, suggests Sendi.

“People have used oils for thousands of years in the Middle East. I would go to my grandma and ask: ‘What’s this oil?’ and she would say: ‘This is known.’ I would say: “Wallah, we don’t know.’” 

Realising that generations-worth of knowledge was at risk of vanishing, Sendi set up Diggn’It, along with Samya Fetyani and Layal Ismail, hand-making beard oils in the family kitchen in Jeddah. Keen to preserve a unique heritage, only elements with a deep-rooted link to the Middle East are used, such as oils pressed from wild hemp, cactus and black seed (“so even though jojoba is a great oil, we don’t use it for that reason,” Sendi says), while scents woven through Arab culture, such as musk, amber, rose and oud, feature heavily. “It was an opportunity to be proud of our own history and to preserve our traditions in a cool and modern way," Sendi says.

“We talk about really deep issues in a way that is accessible to people, and the community has been supportive of what we are trying to build. I am a custodian of this brand and of the idea that we Arabs can do it, too. We can all build something we can all be proud of,” he adds.

Zein Arbeed, founder of Dubai company The Grooming Lab, shares this sense of regional pride. After founding her brand in 2017, she visited countless barbershops, educating them on new products and techniques. Far from facing pushback for entering this all-male domain, Arbeed says her welcome could not have been warmer.

“My name in Lebanon and Syria is a man’s name, but in Jordan, where I am from, Zein is a female name. So at first they think I am a man, until I call them, and then you can hear this hesitation – oh, you are a woman? But they are very respectful, and they respect that an Arab woman is approaching them. There aren’t many products out there, so they are willing to listen, willing to be educated.”

Her company came into being when she was searching for products for her husband. “I wanted to go and select a few products for him, but I couldn’t find anything that was great. Yes, there were beard oils, but they were so basic, just about hydration, so I saw a huge gap.”

Launching with the British brand Captain Fawcett for beard products, Arbeed soon expanded with the UK's Dapper Dan for haircare, and then US brand Jaxon Lane for skin. It is in this final category that Arbeed has seen the most significant developments.

“A lot of men were using unisex brands, but didn’t feel great about it. These new products still contain hyaluronic acid and collagen, but created for men. The differences between the skin of men and women is small, but important,” she explains.

“Men’s skin is thicker than women’s, but tends to thin faster. Also, men are larger than women, so the man’s mask needs to be bigger. With Jaxon Lane, the face mask comes in two halves, so if he has a beard, he can use the upper part on his face and the lower half on his neck.”

Like every other brand, Arbeed’s was also affected by Covid-19. Although already stocked at the physical stores of Harvey Nichols and Faces in the UAE, it was sales through the online site Ounass that pointed to a new path.

“With Covid, the barbershops were closed in March and April, and a lot of customers are worried about going back. During this time, our sales on Ounass tripled, and it opened my eyes to digital, and now we are just launching a website. It was always part of my plan, but not until next year. Covid really brought it forward,” Arbeed says.

Sendi and the team at Diggn’It have moved their production from their kitchen to Sharjah (making a point to keep manufacturing capabilities in the region) and is now all set to launch in the UAE. They hope that historic scents such as their Taif Rose will trigger memories with customers in the UAE, as much as they have for those in Saudi Arabia.

“Some people have picked up our scents and say: 'Wow, that takes me back'. So they [also] get it for their father,” Sendi reveals. “The father has no interest in beard oil, but they buy it just for the scent. It’s lovely.”