The couture and bridal designer came to Cairo for a fashion show celebrating his 10 years in fashion. PASHION met up with Rami Kadi at Walk of Cairo, the unique venue for the event that was packed with Cairo’s fashion set, to find out more about the collection, his UNEP ambassadorship and the current state of the fashion industry.
Q: The ss21 collection is a retrospective of your work of 10 years. How was your choice of pieces of each collection influenced and how did u rework them?
A: Because it is called retrospective 10, we chose the best pieces from the past 10 years. Pieces that really highlight our brand, pieces seen on the red carpet and on celebrities, the most sold pieces, or the pieces trending most on social media. Of course we changed them, we just got inspired by them to remake them in a modern way.
Q: You are the regional UN environmental program ambassador .how are you planning to shed light on the program and how will you promote sustainable practices?
A: Yes I am the ambassador in the region, in West Asia and in the Gulf because we were among the first designers who started initiatives such as cyber shows, or making a dress out of fully recycled plastic. We are now working on new projects such a young designer competition who will be asked to work with our left over pieces, all left over samples to create new items.
Q: The pandemic impacted the fashion business worldwide especially designers and brands specialized in evening and bridal wear like you. How are you navigating your business through these tough times?
A: Of course it wasn’t easy for us, because as you know we only do couture and bridal gowns and big gowns for red carpet events. I didn’t want to shift because our pieces are valuable, are sustainable and people know us because of our knowhow and craftsmanship and authenticity of our embroidery. . So, I stood with our way and with our authenticity of how we are producing things, and now everything is going more or less back to normal and we are back on track. I didn’t want to do ready-to-wear or make less luxurious items. In the future I am to have a ready-to-wear line, but my main objective is couture and I don’t want to shift from couture to ready-to-wear, I want to have a ready-to-wear line and a couture line.
Q: Do you feel it is the right time for aspiring designers to launch a fashion brand now?
A: It’s always a good time to launch a fashion brand. It’s not about the timing, it’s about how and what is your concept. You know that in each and every crisis you have designers or businesses that disappear, but on the other hand you see others who come back to life or who start a new business and they excel in it. So, it’s always a cycle. If they have a nice concept, if they have a vision, it’s yes why not, definitely.
Q: You are a celebrity red carpet favorite. How much do such red carpet appearances actually translate into sales?
A: Red carpet appearances are very good because they give you the exposure and they give people awareness of who we are. But because we work on couture and couture means design to each and every client a unique piece, it’s not easy for the client to choose a dress that has been already seen. Clients want something that has not seen and exclusive to them. So the awareness brings sales, but in and indirect way. We are not a ready-to-wear brand or a handbag brand, where you have seen this bag on a celebrity and you want to get it now. Or you saw a top that is affordable and you want to get it now. Couture is kind of an investment and investment should be done in the right place.
Rihanna’s 5th annual Diamond Ball, 2019
Wearing Rami Kadi
Q: Your first show in Cairo at Walk of Cairo, a venue quiet different to what we are used to from Paris fashion week. Your impression?
A: When we were approached by Walk of Cairo, I was amazed and really impressed by what they have done with the landscape, the architecture, and how luxurious and how modern it is. So I’m very honored to be showing my collection and celebrating this 10-year anniversary at Walk of Cairo, and of course in Cairo itself, a booming place now in the Gulf region.
Q: Can we expect to see you show at Paris haute couture week in July?
A: This July we won’t be present because of the pandemic. As Lebanese we are still not allowed to enter the European countries. And to be honest we are taking it a bit slower. We are trying not to be attached to the calendar like we used to be, and we are fine with that for now. We will see how things will be moving later on, so hopefully maybe in January.
Here some of the highlights of Rami’s first fashion show and exhibition in Cairo.
To relive the fashion show watch the video:
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