MyRan Opens Its First Showroom in Beirut
Lebanese design duo Myrna Bocti and Rania Karam open their first showroom in Beirut, during a time of revolution, but the two are confident that Lebanese fashion will be ok
Photo Credit- Seele Magazine
It’s clear that Lebanon is holding its breath at the moment, straddling between two unknowns. Everyone is affected by the current situation, which sparked when there was talk over a month ago of the government planning to tax WhatsApp users in the country. As a result, the people took the streets to revolt the thirty plus years of corruption and declining quality of life.
Lebanon has always been a cultural powerhouse in the Middle East. This small country in the Levant that kisses the Mediterranean Sea has influenced the region with fashion, food, and style. But since its fifteen-year civil war, which ended in 1990, the country has always been straddling the line of stagnation, never really reaching its full potential. But Myrna Bocti and Rania Karam, fashion designers in Beirut officially opened their showroom this week in Beirut. Despite the challenges the country is facing, they are hopeful and busy. In waiting to interview them, women kept coming into the storeroom buying this new season’s collection.
“We’re so excited about having our own showroom. This is our showroom and our offices. We come here every day, we’re happy to work here. We have clients coming to try on outfits and to get fitted,” explains Rania. “People need to see the clothes and touch them, before they couldn’t easily do that, but with the showroom they can.”
Photo Credit- Seele Magazine
Photo Credit- Seele Magazine
“We are a glamorous easy to wear brand,” says Rania. And now that it’s four years later and they have opened a showroom during a trying time for the country, Myrna and Rania are excited. “We are more and more excited than the first day,” they laugh as they finish the sentence of the other. “From year to year we are more experienced, and we are still learning. We learn from previous collections.”
“When we opened two months ago, the situation in Lebanon was already not very good economically,” says Rania. “But we are very positive. We are two ambitious girls and we are determined. We are hopeful that things will get better. Already we are very much present in the Middle East.”
Getting an unconventional start to fashion, Rania got her start in Marketing, while Myrna got hers in Hotel Management. They design their collections themselves. Everything is manufactured in Beirut, the only thing imported are their fabrics and textiles. It takes about four months from creating to producing, and it was no different for their AW19 current collection.
“Rebellious” is the name of their AW19 collection and it took about four months for them to create. And rebellious it is in the fabrics that they use. “With this collection you can mix and match- leather with velvet items, a skirt with a sweater, a t-shirt with a suit. It’s really a rebellious collection,” laughs Myrna. “This collection comes with the revolution. It’s done in parallel,” muses Rania. “We got inspired from the rebellious woman who is determined, who wants to show herself in the business industry, as well as the active woman who wants to go out at night and she needs to be focused. But the collection is very glamorous. We implemented a shiny look into the collection, even for daytime wear.”
When asked what makes MyRan different from other Lebanese designers, Myrna chimes in, “our quality of textiles is superb and our cuts are done with precision. We do and we re-do. And we perfect our clothes. It took us five years to get our suits right- the cut and the tailoring. Our suits are like the Dolce and Gabana suits now, but at an affordable price.”
Photo Credit- Seele Magazine
And they don’t use one atelier, they outsource their production between many ateliers because they want the best cut for their customers. Their leather, velvet, satin, silk, embroidery clothing items- jackets and kimonos have their own separate ateliers. “We are working with the best craftsmanship for each item type,” says Myrna. “It takes more time and it’s costlier for us but we get the best products.”
But while they had bustling customers coming in, the two are realistic about the situation in Lebanon. They know fashion will be ok here, but when the Lebanese people have families and other financial obligations, buying clothes is the last thing on their list. So, they’re thinking regionally, not only nationally. “We are looking forward to runway shows outside of Lebanon in the GCC. We have begun to register for some shows for next year. We also hope to export outside of Lebanon as well” they tell me. They have a pop-up in Dubai the first week of December, they will be presenting in Saudi Arabia and Paris in January, as well as in Amman and parts of Africa. Plus, they sell online.
With their first ever showroom, a new collection, and plans for the label for the future, MyRan is setting itself up to be a firm fashion establishment in an already culture powerhouse in the Middle East. It is a label to watch and shop. Plus, who doesn’t want to support Lebanese designers at time when they need it the most?