Egypt relies on fashion and culture to sell its image

On Saturday, Dior presented its men's collection at the foot of the Pyramids, at the gates of Cairo, during its first fashion show in Egypt. In October, the temple of Hatshepsut, in Luxor, in the south, had hosted the parade of the Italian Stefano Ricci.

Dior CEO Pietro Beccari told AFP that the French haute couture house chose the setting of the pyramids because they are much more "than just a background", drawing on the astrology of ancient Egypt for this collection called "Celestial".

"This will encourage other international brands and cultural players to come," art historian Bahia Shehab told AFP, stressing that Egypt relies on "culture for its image".

Already in 2021, the Egypt of the pharaohs invaded screens around the world with the Mummies Parade, a spectacular parade of 22 royal mummies through Cairo.

The event was orchestrated by President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, determined to revive tourism, which represents 10% of GDP (gross domestic product) and employs two million people, but has been undermined by ten years of demonstrations, economic upheavals and then Covid.

Opening up to modern culture thanks to its heritage, Egypt has also attracted the American hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas, who sang at the Pyramids of Giza, while the Frenchman JR exhibited his photos there.

For fashion photographer Mohsen Othman, "such events are vital" because a big house like Dior comes with a "huge budget", part of which goes to local talents with whom it partners for the occasion.

- "Pool of young creators" -

Iman Eldeeb, whose agency paraded two Egyptian models on Saturday, welcomed this "long-awaited step for the fashion world in Egypt".

Already, the French couturier Balmain presented a bustier from the Egyptian brand Okhtein at Paris Fashion Week, and Vogue Italy presented Egyptian creations at Milan Fashion Week.

But not all the houses are ready to export because if Egypt "has a huge pool of young designers, without professional training, it is difficult to transform this creativity into a product", affirms Ingy Ismail, whose agency Flare advises luxury brands.

Despite everything, "in luxury clothing and jewelry, we have gone from less than a hundred Egyptian brands to more than 1,000 today," notes Ms. Ismail.

The boost came in 2016, in the midst of an economic crisis: in one day, the Egyptian pound lost 50% of its value and deprived the country of imports.

A local market then developed, explains Ms. Ismail, because “the richest 1% is enough to create demand” in a country which has 86,000 millionaires in dollars, according to Credit Suisse.

In the chic suburbs of Cairo where they live, new shopping centers have been built "to the standards of international luxury brands", she continues.

- "Art and heritage" -

However, players in the sector denounce the bureaucracy of customs and visa services, as many obstacles for companies wishing to set up in Egypt.

"The legislative framework is complicated," admits Nadine Abdel Ghaffar, whose Art d'Egypte agency organizes a contemporary art exhibition at the Pyramids every year.

But already, she told AFP, "a big step was taken when the government authorized Art of Egypt and Dior to organize events at the foot of the Pyramids".

For her, Cairo has every interest in this "fusion between art and heritage, contemporary and ancient", because it "promotes the country's culture".

Mrs. Abdel Ghaffar pleads for the authorities to create a unit dedicated to the organization of parades, exhibitions, concerts or filming.

"We can't count the number of international productions that have fallen back on Morocco, Jordan or even Saudi Arabia" for lack of a permit to shoot in Egypt, explains Ms. Shehab.

The latest Hollywood blockbuster on the Egypt of the pharaohs, the Marvel Moon Knight series, had to reconstruct Cairo in... Budapest.