Dubai – Entrepreneurs and digital influencers got together this Monday (15) to discuss their careers and female empowerment in the beauty industry. The panel took place in Dubai, the UAE during the Beauty Business Conference at Beautyworld Middle East, the region’s premier beauty industry show. The panelists recounted how their business ideas thrived, mostly through digital media.
Speakers included influencer Samira Olfat, who has over 187,000 followers on Instagram and played moderator duties. She looked back on her work as a makeup artist working with Hollywood celebrities, before starting the Dubai-based Max Factor Makeup Academy, which offers professional makeup lessons online. “I worked for several years and decided to settle here. Presently I work my sister, she’s right here,” said Olfat, explaining how important it is to not work completely alone and to be able to share her work with another woman.
Paria Ghorashi is the founder of Blowout&Go, an at-your-doorstep beauty services company in the UAE. “I started out in my garage, and now the business has grown,” she said. Blowout&Go is also active in e-commerce, supplying makeup and body care brands as well as Pro, a photo, makeup and hair production service intended for events.
Ghorashi believes being able to rely on other women from the get-go was key. “That’s the concept of sisterhood. One’s always helping the other out,” she said. Ellie Raheb, CEO and director of Rabee skincare, a brand of essential Damascus rose oil-based products, complemented what Ghorashi said. “Whenever you see a woman in need, help her up. Some woman has helped you up some time. And be grateful towards whoever supported you. Remember that person,” said Raheb, who hopes her daughter will keep the company alive in the future. “I named her Rosa. I truly hope she’ll keep up this work,” she asserted.
Influencer and entrepreneur Zahra Abdalla, of the Cooking With Zahra blog, believes educating men to work for women’s empowerment is also important. “It’s extremely important to have women support us. Apart from that, it’s also due to strong husbands and fathers that we’re here today, because the going will get tough at times, and it’s important for men to be encouraging partners when that happens. I had a father who’d tell me since I was little that I had to get out there, do things and learn. That was really encouraging,” she said. “That’s why I’m happy to see that people like you and me are raising our kids to become those kinds of men and women,” concluded Ghorashi.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
