Yara Alnamlah
Saudi Blogger Yara Alnamlah garnered her first half-million Instagram followers from her YouTube channel, where she posted make-up tutorials and beauty product reviews. Her debut fragrance ‘Attention Plz!’, as the name suggests, is a gripping blend of aromas. “I chose the brand name because of the ingredients,” says Yara, who is a student of Riyadh’s Prince Sultan University. “Anyone who wears this is sure to grab your attention.”
SO by Samira Olfat
From launching the Max Factor Makeup Academy in 2013 to appearing on many regional TV shows, Iranian-born Dubai-based Samira Olfat has a host of beauty credentials under her (well-equipped make-up brush) belt. She has painted the faces of celebrities such as Nancy Ajram and Eva Longoria, so it’s no surprise she went on to create her own cosmetic line. The brand started with a collection of luxury make-up brushes, and launched an eyeshadow palette and highlighter this February. “I have built this brand with my heart and 15-year experience in the industry,” she shares. Its formulas feature dreamy textures, potent pigments and aesthetically pleasing packaging.
K7L
“Unsatisfied with the offerings of foreign cosmetic brands in the region in terms of color selection and longevity, I sought to create a brand inspired by Arabian women,” says Areej, founder of the Kuwaiti beauty brand. K7L offers an impressive range of products, including long-lasting lip colors, full-cover foundations, make-up removers, primers and cruelty-free brushes. Drawing inspiration from its Middle Eastern origin, on first glance, K7L reads as two letters with the number ‘7’ in the middle. But when read in Arabic, ‘7’ translates to an ‘H’, and the name becomes ‘KHL’ —the Arabic word for traditional eyeliner. “It is my way of encrypting my roots into the brand, so that no matter what path it follows, it’ll always possess that link to its foundation.”
