Haute Elan's London Modest Fashion Week will be a first for UK next month

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Jan 30, 2017

Haute Elan, the e-tailer targeting Muslim women, has announced the debut of London Modest Fashion Week to be staged on February 18 and 19 at the Saatchi Gallery.

The first-of-its-kind event for London will coincide with the British Fashion Council’s official London Fashion Week.

LMFW will feature 40-plus brands, the organisers said, including local labels and international collections. Unlike LFW, it will target consumers as well as the trade and one of its days will be open to the public with runway shows, see-now-buy-now shopping, panel discussions and workshops.

It is also intended to act as a forum for brands to meet buyers and potential investors.

The importance of the Muslim consumer to the global fashion industry has been growing in recent years with big names including Dolce & Gabbana and DKNY creating product specifically to target customers wanting clothing more modest than much of what’s available in Western stores.

In 2010 Muslims made up 23% of the world’s population but this figure is predicted to reach almost 30% by the end of the next decade with spending power heading toward $500bn. This will make modest clothing one of the key growth areas for the womenswear sector.

Haute Elan, which was founded by former investment banker Romanna Bint-Abubaker, was founded as a luxury modest fashion site. But last year the company raised $1m in seed funding from a Singapore investor to launch a curated store with a broader reach, covering both high-end and mass-market fashion. Brands on the new Modlist.co include Gucci, Joseph, Mango, Uniqlo, and a selection of over 150 designers and boutiques.