He's been largely credited with turning a little-known clothing store into a retail powerhouse in the UAE. But tomorrow, as his dream of creating a major brand awareness campaign culminates in the form of a 9,650-square-meter fashion behemoth of a presentation, CEO Raza Beig is hoping to kick off a fashion revolution that will be the talk of the town for a long time to come.
For what's called Splash Fashion Paradise, Beig and his team have hired out the entire Al Badia Golf Club in Dubai Festival City and are in the process of turning it into a carnival-like atmosphere where invitees will, in Beig's own words, "party the night and celebrate fashion".
More than 70 fresh-faced models have been flown in from around the world to parade the label's latest spring-summer looks and an army of 500-plus workers are putting the finishing touches to the venue which will host about 7,000 tightly screened guests.
"There will be gaming areas, wall climbing, bull riding, lounges, shisha, and experience kiosks. For the four-to-five hours that people are there, I want them to have the time of their lives as the entire venue turns into a massive club," said Beig. "And of course, there will be lots of fashion. Yes, we are very strict about our dress code."
For the last five years, Beig's bi-annual fashion showcase parties have been the highlight of the UAE's social calendar. Usually centred around a theme, this year's being Tropical Luxe, the invite-only events are as much about creating a buzz around his label as celebrating its success.
"We've done smaller venues and this being our 10th show, we wanted to go all-out," said Beig.
Loud and cllear
Owned by the conglomerate Landmark Group, Splash's 19-year history can be traced back to a single store in Sharjah in 1993. The label has since expanded to more than 140 stores spread across much of the Middle East and Asia.
The plan now, said Beig, is to go truly international.
"We didn't have a franchise module before, but now we're ready to take it across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Russia. And hopefully, the noises we are making are heard loud and clear."
Featuring collections for men, women, children and accessories, Splash's international expansion began with a rebranding exercise kick-started a year ago.
"Our customer research revealed that people's loyalties were with the Splash brand. So although we stocked our own in-house designed collections, we also had a number of brands. The rebranding saw everything being categorised under the Splash brand, giving it more of a mono-brand feel. And that has been a huge success," explained Beig.
Come April, the label will also launch its own denim collection called Splash DNM, which, according to Beig, will feature "the largest collection of denim".
"We will have denim ranging from Dh40 to Dh185. And these are highly stylised denims. Our values will never change. We are always going to be a mid-price retailer. That will always stay the same."
Known for his hands-on approach, Beig is involved with every aspect of the brand, and is the last word in every decision-making process, including the final look of the models at the showcase.
Opinionated
"If the model doesn't burn the runway, we can't use him or her. It's not just a fashion show for me, it's building an entire experience. So keeping a tight eye is important.
"I have very strong opinions. I have been doing this for 20 years, so I think I'm allowed," he laughed.
The 7,000 invitees for the Splash Fashion Paradise will include stakeholders, the media and customers, some of whom won theirs with Splash purchases. Two main shows will be held tomorrow: A youth show for under-21s earlier in the evening, followed by the main show.
"I hope we can expand this further in the future and make it a three-day event to celebrate fashion," said Beig. "I know we can do it, because when I first came up with the idea for the Fashion Paradise, everybody thought I was crazy. But here we are, completely overbooked."
For those still wanting in, all invites are now closed.
"You should have spent Dh500 at Splash," teased Beig.
