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The Best is Yet to Come

Fashion designer Lobnan Mahfouz Jr speaks candidly to Masterminds Corps about his foray into the world of fashion

Think of LebanonZs young fashion designers and the word Dubai registers highly. Speak to Lobnan and you are more likely to hear Istanbul, Positano, New Deli and Bangkok. After all, these are destinations in which he honed his craft.

I didnZt want to design couture, as everyone does in Lebanon, but rather ready-to-wear. I certainly didnZt want work in the Gulf, he says.

Not sure what journey to take, Lobnan relocated to Istanbul in 2012, a year after he graduated with an honorary degree in Fashion Design and Pattern Drafting at ESMOD Beirut. It took me four years after graduating to start my own brand. I wanted to take my time, he says.

Staying in Istanbul for a year, workingataready-to-wear factory,Lobnan then returned to Lebanon where he met an Italian designer. This took him on a journey tothe renowned Italian village of Positano. It was here he worked on a creation of kaftans, leadingLobnan toNew Deli to work on the collection there.

A stint with our very own Masterminds Corp in 2013/14 then tookhim to Bangkok, which he describes as an amazing experience and the best one ever. I designed the collection from A to Z, often traveling to China, he says.

Internships with reputable fashion designers RabiehKarouz, Zuheir Murad and Elie Saab and LobnanZs experience from working abroad meant he now had the tools, and the passion, to launch in 2015 his own label, Perverse. I launched it on November 11, my lucky number, so called the first collection 11/11, he says.

LOOKING AHEAD

The price range of the Perverse brand is $130 upwards. ItZs reasonable for a designer, Lobnan says. I want to see people wearing my label; it makes me so happy. I donZt target a niche market but rather those who want to be stylish and wear something different. LetZs face it, we are not Valentino; we are young Lebanese talent and should price accordingly.

Starting from zero, Lobnan did not expect people to love the brand and buy it, I just believed in working hard and things would fall in place at the right time. I do not rush. I do not care about being rich and famous. I care about making a living. For me it is a passion, he says. As for the future...I really have no idea. Except that, the best is yet to come.

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