Doha, Qatar – Doha Festival City and Harper’s Bazaar today unveiled Emerging Voices, a fashion and creativity exhibition celebrating exciting new talents in collaboration with VCUarts Qatar. Held at Doha Festival City, the event kicked off a new series of events to mark Doha Festival City’s bold new era as the destination of coveted trends and expressive fashion.

Emerging Voices has been curated to support and promote talented VCUarts Qatar students and the evolving fashion scene in Qatar. In addition to VCUarts Qatar, the the event program will welcome talented creatives from Scale7 next month.

In her opening speech, Noreen Nasralla, Executive Director, Marketing, Al-Futtaim Real Estate, said: “With Emerging Voices, we reaffirm Doha Festival City’s role as a key player in Qatar’s fashion landscape, supporting the next generation of designers and setting the stage for Qatar’s creative future.

Doha Festival City encourages engagement and self-expression, and we look forward to renewing our live event line-up to inspire a legion of bright fashion instigators to come.”

Featured VCUart students—Haya Al Thani, Halah Mahmoud, Samah Sulyman, Fay Alsharif, Jory Al-Buainain, and Maya Yatim—unveiled their work in fashion and editorial photography, demonstrating the creative potential that is shaping the future of Qatar's fashion scene.

On the reveal, Bianca Brigitte Bonomi, Director of Harper’s Bazaar Qatar, said: “Today marks the start of an exciting collaboration between Harper’s Bazaar and Doha Festival City, celebrating the next generation of fashion talent emerging from Qatar. We're eager to continue building this community and supporting talented voices in Doha.”

Adding a comment on the impact and importance of the event, Christopher Fink, Chair of Fashion Design & Merchandising at VCUArts Qatar, said: “The launch of Emerging Voices in partnership with Doha Festival City and Harper’s Bazaar Qatar has been hugely successful. It is very meaningful for our students to showcase their designs to the community and connect with leaders in the field of fashion. We look forward to future collaborations.”

Another highlight of the evening, Harper’s Bazaar’s Leading Voices segment, presented an in-conversation session with 14-time cover girl and influential women empowerment figure, Nour Arida, who shared highlights on the journey of her career and her work in supporting and nurturing female empowerment.

Commenting on the Emerging Voices pop-up collaboration between Doha Festival City, Harper’s Bazaar Qatar, VCUarts Qatar, and Scale7, guest of honour Nour Arida said, “I am so impressed by the Qatari talent I have seen today at Emerging Voices. These young designers have produced incredible pieces of international level design and quality and fit for international markets. My advice to emerging talent is to dream big and keep going. Never give up. There is a real fashion moment happening with Arab designers internationally and it’s great to see the designers of tomorrow here today.”

On October 22, there will be a special pop-up at Harvey Nichols in Doha Festival City, spotlighting three leading talents from Scale7.

Since its inception, Doha Festival has long supported the local and regional fashion and beauty scene by hosting international brands and designers that capture the essence of the local culture.

In the future it enlists its vision and mission to continue to cater to the variety of local and international shoppers with variety fashion, luxury brands and exciting activities and events for diverse audiences.

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Beatrice Zemelyte, Weber Shandwick: bzemelyte@webershandwick.com

About Doha Festival City

Doha Festival City is Doha’s destination for style expression and coveted trends and amongst the top 20 malls globally, encompasses over 500 stores within its 250,000 sqm area, featuring renowned brands like Debenhams, Harvey Nichols Doha, Chopard, Al Fardan Jewellery, Marli, Mikimoto, IKEA, ACE, Centrepoint, and Marks & Spencer.  DHFC offers an exclusive selection of first-to-market signature brands in fashion, beauty, and EV smart mobility, including Alo Yoga, Lululemon, Gold Apple, Creed, Hermès Perfume and Beauty, as well as the Tesla showroom — all of which are unique to Qatar’s retail landscape.

The mall offers over 100 dining choices, including popular eateries such as Nando’s, Cheesecake Factory, PF Chang’s, and local favourites Monoprix and Jamie’s Italian, as well as traditional restaurants like Yasmine Palace and Ladurée. Varied food courts at both ends cater to quick dining needs.  

For entertainment, Doha Festival City offers a diverse range of world-class attractions. Angry Birds World, the world’s first park of its kind, provides family fun inspired by the popular game and movie. VIRTUOCiTY™, the region’s first dedicated gaming hub, offers an immersive digital experience with racing simulators, escape rooms, and an eSports arena. Snow Dunes™, Qatar's first indoor snow park, features a castle inspired by Qatari architecture and uses advanced technology to create a wintry wonderland at -4 degrees Celsius. Additionally, the mall houses Qatar's first VOX 4D cinema complex, providing an exceptional movie-going experience. 

Additionally, in collaboration with Qatar Islamic Bank and Mastercard, Doha Festival City launched an exclusive Gift Card, revolutionizing the shopping experience with a seamless, cashless payment option available in over 500 stores. Available for purchase at the mall’s customer service desks, this innovative card simplifies transactions and offers access to a host of exclusive offers and promotions. Gift Card holders can enjoy special deals across a diverse range of retail, F&B, and entertainment outlets, making it the perfect choice for those seeking the ideal gift or wishing to shop cost-effectively. 

The mall has been honoured as the 2023 Qatar Tourism winner for 'Outstanding Service Excellence - Shopping Mall' and 'Outstanding Smart Solutions - Innovative Solutions in Sustainability,' showcasing its commitment to sustainability and service excellence. This recognition is accompanied by the 2020 Travelers’ Choice Award from Tripadvisor and accolades from KAHRAMAA and the Al Daayen Municipality. 

Doha Festival City is a sought-after destination for residents, investors, and stakeholders, delivering an exceptional experience in shopping, dining, and entertainment, reinforcing its status as a go-to mall in the country and region.