Rabia Zargarpur






























A YOUNG Emirati fashion designer who specialises in fashion for the modern Muslim woman under the banner of ‘universal modest chic’, has become the first winner of the GCC/MED (Mediterranean) regional competition run by the British Council to find the International Young Fashion Entrepreneur of the Year.This first British Council International Young Fashion Entrepreneur Award aims to discover talented and successful individuals who have both the creative flair and business edge to become future leaders and champions of their local fashion industry.

Rabia Zargarpur, better known as Rabia Z. (the name of her clothing label) will now head to the International London Fashion Week in February 2008 to represent the GCC/MED region and to compete for the international title, as one of 10 regional winners from around the world.
This is what she says about hijab:
"I have been living in the US for half of my life and when I decided to wear the hijab seven years ago, I discovered that there was nothing to wear. So many women who wear the hijab want to be fashionable and it is difficult for them to find clothes. If you wear the jalabiya (long gowns) or the abaya when you are abroad you get more attention and people look at you differently."

"I want to give a positive image for Muslims," she says, adding that what she is doing is a service for both Muslims and non-Muslims.