A view of the fifth edition of Merwad Exhibition at the DECC. Pic: Abdul Basit/ The Peninsula
Qatar’s abaya fashion industry, which is increasingly becoming more competitive, is seeing brisk business in different online platforms, particularly social media channels such as Instagram.
Growing number of Qatari entrepreneurs have seen their businesses sustained, even during the COVID-19 pandemic because of their online stores.
Young Qatari businesswomen Huda Al Khuleifi, designer and owner of White Abaya and Khuloud Al Sahlawi, designer and owner of Eternity Abayas, are among those entreprenuers.
“At the beginning of the pandemic, my sales were not affected at all. It even increased the online purchasing by up to 30 percent. I also started doing videos on Instagram so that they can see the exact model, size, and colours of the abayas. I was still receiving orders from other countries in the GCC region and worldwide including the UK and US. There were still many customers buying from me for the Eid and Ramadan,” Al Sahlawi said while talking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the Merwad 5 expo yesterday.
She added that she also expanded her business during the pandemic by starting a new line of kaftan or dresses for people to wear at home amid the restrictions on public gatherings, which had eventually affected her sales.
“I had to do something. I used my creativity and expanded the business. We’re now in the middle of recovery. And we’re seeing sales starting to pick up again gradually. But the online sales have sustained the business,” Al Sahlawi added.
Al Khuleifi is also optimistic that with more public gatherings opening up again, the sale of abayas will also pick up.
“At the middle of the pandemic, the shop had to close for four months. People were not wearing abayas because there were no gatherings. But people are starting to go out more now, and we also have the vaccines. Even my other (abaya designer) friends are also having more sales now,” she added.
Al Khuleifi, who is also a graphic designer, has started her abaya business in 2019. She said majority of her sales come from her online store on Instagram which she also created the same year.
“Selling online is faster and easier. They can see the abayas and make their orders online. The customers also prefer to have their orders delivered to their homes. They only tell me their measurements; I make the abayas and have them delivered to the clients. It’s all online now. All businesses, even for abayas,” Al Khuleifi added.
The Qatari market for abayas has grown more competitive. And entrepreneurs like Al Sahlawi and Al Khuleifi need to be more innovative to keep up with the growing competition.
“It’s a big market. And we have to be updated with the fashion line. When I started in 2012, there were only a few Qatari designers, like only four to five pure Qatari brands. And I was one of them. But now, over 90 percent of the participants here at the expo are Qatari abaya designers,” said Al Sahlawi.
Al Khuleifi added: “The market is changing. The ladies used to wear all black abayas only. But now, they are starting to wear abayas with other colours, such as white and even brighter colours like pink and blue. The trends are changing”.
Globally, it was estimated that Muslim consumers spent over $283bn in 2018 on apparel and footwear, according to the State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2019-20. It added that the market for Islamic clothing is projected to grow to $402bn by 2024, with a significant potential to take a much larger slice of the $2.5 trillion global apparel market.
