Very Cavalli

The Italian fashion maestro comes to Dubai to unveil Club Cavalli.

Designer Roberto Cavalli never leaves a fashion show without making people dream. Every piece, every stitch and every detail of his shows is so beautifully thought-out that you can't help but fall in love with his work.

It's this passion for creating that pushed him into the realm of interior design. And, to mark this new chapter, Cavalli chose Dubai (or Dubai chose Cavalli, as he says) to open a place where the he could express himself freely, a magical place where people would be inspired to dream. "I love life and I want you to love life like me," he said at the launch.

With Club Cavalli, the designer makes "his dream" come true, bringing his love for life to to everybody. The club is a magical place adorned with animal prints and delicate materials.

Club Cavalli, which is the first of its kind in the Middle East, is not only a place to chill out and dance; it's a door into the designer's world. Here, you can eat the food he likes, hear the music he prefers, find Cavalli creations and traditional Italian merchandise.

"I will come back to Dubai often", says the designer, I also wish to create a new line of Abayas that will take my name."

His story

Cavalli was born in Tuscany in 1940 to a family of artists. His grandfather was a famous member of the Macchiaioli art movement and his father was a tailor. Cavalli enrolled at a local art institute where he concentrated on textile prints.

He always loved innovation and experimenting and, in the early 1970s, he came up with new revolutionary printing techniques which marked his grand debut at Paris at the commission of great designers like Hermés and Pierre Cardin. At a time when the fashion world was tired of minimalism, Cavalli brought energy back to the catwalk with a collection full of colour, brocade, intarsia leathers and wild prints.

In 1972, he opened his first boutique in Saint-Tropez. Here, he also met his wife Eva Duringer at the Miss Universe Pageant. She was the stunning Miss Austria; he was the judge. They fell in love, married, and she became his business partner.

The red carpet

At the opening of the Cavalli Club, major celebrities from the world of music and movies stepped onto the red carpet at the Fairmont Hotel. From Grammy winner Estelle, to Arabic singers Elissa and Wael Kfoury, everyone who's anyone was at the opening.

Cavalli was one of the last to arrive, accompanied by his family. When we asked how he felt about the occasion he said, " I don't know yet; I 'll have to ask myself tonight when everything is over."

The "Cavalli Woman"

Cavalli has earned a great reputation around Hollywood and in the world of international music. It's the refinement of his creations and his understanding of the feminine world that makes him such a huge success around the globe.

"I don't choose to dress [celebrities], they choose me," he says. Superstars like Kate Moss, Paris Hilton, Cindy Crawford, Beyoncé and Victoria Beckham have swore by his design genius and music stars like Britney Spears have asked him to design their tour costumes.

When asked which celebrity best represents the Cavalli Woman, he's torn. But ultimately, Halle Berry and Posh Spice Victoria Beckham represent the designer's ideal.

His future

Meanwhile Cavalli's couture empire continues to grow. After creating his first lifestyle concept club, the designer plans to continue working in interior design by decorating hotels in Dubai and Abu Dhabi with patterns inspired by his fashion collections. It looks like the UAE better buckle up for a serious style infusion from the maestro.