Filipino culture comes to Riyadh

DHAHRAN: On an bizarre November night time in 2020, Lina Malaika and Farah Hammad had a dialog that modified their lives.

Within the midst of the worldwide pandemic, the pair determined to embark on a enterprise partnership that they hoped would elevate their communities and carve out a brand new path for them within the enterprise world.

Each girls are established in their very own proper: Malaika has been within the artistic business for over a decade as a filmmaker, designer and entrepreneur; and Hammad is a clothier with an acute eye for shade and texture and a repertoire that spans a number of continents.

“Mainly, me and Lina are expertise brokers — Clay is the title underneath us. We aren’t an company but — that’s the plan. Hopefully, we get buyers and we turn into a correct company. However for now, we’re two expertise brokers,” Hammad informed Arab Information.

It began after they met in September 2020, and shortly afterwards determined to launch their enterprise, Clay Fashions.

It was Malaika’s brainchild. She received her begin at Vacation spot Jeddah journal a couple of decade in the past after which as a artistic director at TheLoftMe, a artistic studio primarily based in her hometown within the Kingdom’s coastal metropolis.

For every of these roles, she wanted fashions for photoshoots and located it fairly cumbersome and formidable to consistently curate a database for locally-based fashions.

It was nonexistent on the time, she stated, as a result of many ladies nonetheless wanted approval from their households to be photographed, and to have their pictures within the media was nonetheless taboo in some ways.

Malaika then determined to check movie in New York and style in London earlier than settling again house. She discovered that she was consistently confronted with the identical activity of discovering fashions for every of her roles and determined to take issues into her personal palms. She had a Rolodex of fashions however needed it to be extra streamlined.

“I used to be simply at all times pondering, I’ve what it takes … all I would like is a accomplice as a result of I can’t do that by myself. Yeah, I’m a artistic individual however I’m not essentially a businesswoman,” Malaika stated.

Hammad had an analogous hurdle every time she had a shoot for her style design enterprise.

Raised in a number of international locations, splitting her time between Jeddah, Europe and the US, the globe-trotter has a peaceful steadiness to her. Her attentiveness and empathy towards these round her makes it appear to be she collects ideas and weaves them into the world with an invisible string. She is a doer.

Becoming a member of forces appeared like future for the 2 girls.

“We’re on the identical web page, we roughly share the identical type of mentality. So we actually understood one another. I don’t bear in mind precisely the dialog, however I used to be telling her I’ve this concept to show this database right into a modeling company.

“And I informed her ‘for those who don’t do it with me, it’s by no means gonna occur as a result of I’ve constructed so many concepts in my head they usually by no means, by no means come to life.’ I’ve like a shelf of unfinished concepts. We full one another in that sense. She began immediately (and) it got here to life. She constructed the web site by the following morning. No joke,” Malaika stated.

“I used to be truthfully scared after which a bit skeptical as a result of, for me, after I launched my enterprise, my connections — it took years. So when she approached me relating to this, I used to be like, I’ll get again to you however I feel it’s a sure. Then, I used to be like you already know what, I feel that is going to be an excellent alternative,” Hammad informed Arab Information.

Saudi Arabia was opening up so that they determined to grab the day.

“This was throughout COVID, bear in mind? On the time, there was this uncertainty in life and there was additionally like, a variety of ‘we’re gonna die.’ And except for it being a enterprise, it was nice for me, and I’d say for Farah, too, as a coping instrument as a result of we had been coping with parallel private transitions, and that helped us. It was type of escapism,” Malaika stated.

The title “Clay” was the primary one which got here to Malaika. She needed a “quick, playful and versatile” title that was versatile like a block of clay that one is ready to form. It’s a phrase that would describe make-up, hair, clothes — or modeling.

“We had (a) lawyer that helped us with the contracts. We needed the contract to be very versatile, simply so it’s truthful for everybody and to not stand in the way in which of the mannequin’s venture and life. It was crucial for us so the mannequin feels that they’ll belief us as a result of we’re not there to dominate, we wish that relationship with our fashions and to take care of it, and with our shoppers, as nicely,” Malaika informed Arab Information.

Modeling is usually extra women-dominant however Clay additionally has 5 male fashions.

Considered one of them, Abdullah Ali, was raised in Riyadh and joined Clay after being on the scene independently. His versatile look and aura of confidence permits him to drag off city and conventional appears to be like flawlessly.

“As a self-established mannequin, one of many obstacles that I confronted in my early profession was the linking level between the expertise and the consumer. Fortunately, Clay stepped up and have become one of many main modeling companies in Saudi Arabia. Regardless that I had my consumer base, working with Clay was a bonus to elevating the native business requirements collectively,” Ali informed Arab Information.

It was necessary for Clay to supply shoppers choices and to not field any mannequin into any class. Their web site has a piece for Saudi Arabia, worldwide and male fashions, with all their specs. They don’t characterize anybody underneath 21.

“Have in mind, previous to the brand new Saudi imaginative and prescient, most manufacturers — all luxurious manufacturers — would shoot merchandise devoted to us within the GCC utilizing international fashions. Pictures in international areas that don’t characterize us, it doesn’t enchantment to us. And slowly, the manufacturers began noticing, like, we have to communicate to our shoppers.

“Lots of them began going to Dubai; it wasn’t acceptable to have fashions capturing in Saudi Arabia. Manufacturers lastly began wanting to make use of native fashions in Saudi Arabia, so once more, I wish to spotlight that was crucial for us to start out this right here — it was nonexistent,” Malaika stated.

Whereas fashions are infamous for being divas, they’ve solely encountered one mannequin who misbehaved and disrespected the consumer by being tardy and having an angle on set.

They’ve zero tolerance for unprofessional habits they usually issued a refund to the consumer with an apology and the mannequin was swiftly fired after giving her a second likelihood, which she additionally abused. The model did return as a buyer and it’s a testomony to their dedication to caring for the connection.

“They arrive again to us due to the kind of professionalism we provide and we offer,” Malaika stated.

Though the Clay founders nonetheless take into account their enterprise to be a startup, their stellar fame in Jeddah and the digital MENA area is clear.

As of now, Clay exists largely within the cloud, actually. Each girls have studios, so it’s potential to fulfill in a bodily area, however many of the interactions are over the cellphone.

“We wish to develop and we wish to discover extra abilities. (If we) can discover extra we will discover buyers to develop … just like the sky’s the restrict,” Malaika stated.

For anybody hoping to land a coveted spot at Clay, professionalism is a should but in addition an internet presence is vital. Within the digital and social media saturated world, each aspiring mannequin has the power to open up an Instagram account and share pictures.

“It’s crucial to have a portfolio. With stylists, designers, photographers — see how they appear behind the digicam. They may not be photogenic. They need to do a little analysis, take a look at YouTube movies of fashions, how they pose. To some, it’s only a pastime they usually don’t actually take it critically,” Hammad stated.

Whereas they do the majority of the work for quality-control assurance, they’ve a number of freelance brokers who assist when mandatory. To date, they’ve the identical instincts when deciding to let a mannequin be part of the Clay household and haven’t but disagreed on who to enroll.

They at present have 30 fashions on their books however are on the lookout for extra.

The ladies say they don’t seem to be doing it for fame however to fill a niche and function a platform to raise the business.

“Different companies take a share from the mannequin’s fee, we don’t try this, we add our share to the mannequin’s fee. The mannequin pays us to do the soiled work — like we’re their brokers. We make life simpler for the consumer as a result of every part is finished, they don’t need to cope with something. All they do is e book … So everyone seems to be joyful. It’s a win-win state of affairs for the fashions, and for us and for the consumer. It’s like an ideal recipe,” Malaika stated.