Made in Qatar | Financial times

“I love being surrounded by creative people and their positive energy. It’s great to see what comes out of them,” says Qatar-based Alia Rachid of the talent at her Fromm design platform, which she founded in 2021. Fromm: The extra “m” refers to its headquarters located in the district recently developed from Msheireb. of Doha – is what Rachid describes as a “talent incubator” as well as a thriving luxury design brand. Their goal is to work collaboratively with a select group of designers who are offered a mentoring experience that takes them from concept to completed product, resulting in a collection of contemporary furniture, lighting and accessories sold under the brand . Each product is manufactured and developed in Doha, then prototyped and produced with the help of the Fromm Lab team, its studio and showroom in Milan. It is a portal that connects the creativity of the Middle East with the world capital of design.

Your passion for creativity and design bodes well for your success.

Rachid, who dedicates most of his time to Dem, she’s super-high-pitched but soft-spoken and impeccably elegant: On the day she’s photographed at her center, she’s wearing a Valentino silk shirt and green pants. She is the daughter of Egyptian Rachid M Rachid, president of Valentino and Balmain, and founder of the investment company Bidayat, which recently bought the rights to designer Walter Albini, which will soon be relaunched. Rachid M. Rachid was Minister of Commerce and Industry in 2011, when a revolution toppled Hosni Mubarak as president. His daughter, 43, studied industrial engineering in Egypt. Prior to creating Fromm, she ran a commercial furniture and lighting business, and serves on the board of Bidayat, while also serving as president of fashion brand Khrisjoy and luxury eyewear startup Akoni.

Shahzad Akhtar, CEO of Alsara Investment Group (owner Khrisjoy, Akoni and Bidayat), believes that Rachid’s business acumen will greatly benefit the portal. “Alia’s business leadership is defined by her ability to combine strategic understanding with attention to detail,” he says. “His passion for creativity and design bodes well for his success in the luxury industry.”

It was observing the way creatives work (many of whom lack the business knowledge that could lead to commercial success) that gave Rachid the idea for Fromm. Initially, the intention was to offer mentorship to aspiring designers. As it turned out, something more was needed. “I started thinking about how to provide more opportunities to young talents in the region,” says Rachid. “Work together to give them exposure to the West.”

Another woman in an equally influential situation convinced her: “It was knowing Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani [the sister of Qatar’s ruling emir], who commissioned the M7 building, was what inspired me to come up with the incubator model.” It refers to the cultural and design center of Qatar, where the company is now located.

The Fromm space on M7, designed by Carlos Beghetti, is a bright, open-plan hub with huge communal tables. The building highlights the collaborative spirit that Fromm promotes. It includes a showroom where the collection is displayed and a materials library for customers to customize fabrics and finishes. “We started at the same time here in Doha and in Milan. Milan is where the experience is,” says Rachid. That experience, together with a production and sales team, is led by designer and strategic consultant Luca Fois, co-founder of the Milanese design district Zona Tortona and professor at the Politecnico di Milano.

“It has been incredible to participate in the creation of such a beautiful, cultural and contemporary design story, since its conception,” says Fois of his collaboration with the brand. “Coming from someone dedicated to design like me, Fromm is a unique international platform that emphasizes cultural hybridization and heritage innovation… Who else is doing that today?”

Rachid and his team choose the designers, many of them young women, often for their passion and ideas rather than their experience or formal training. There are currently 11 creatives on the roster, with more to follow. Most are Qatari-born, including Noora Al Melhim, Abdulrahman Al Muftah, Maryam Al Suwaidi, Shua’a Ali, Hammam Alabdulla, Aisha Al Mohannadi and Kaltham Al Kuwari of the design duo DHI. Kahhal Rugs 1871led by Mohamed El Kahhal, is also part of the poster, as is the Turkish Rüya Akyol, resident in Milan, and the Italian artist Antonio Aricò.

“Our first collection was designed by women and that is something I am proud of,” says Rachid. “We have given them the opportunity not only to design but also to deliver to the market and travel to the factories in Italy and Turkey where the pieces are manufactured; This is your opportunity for exposure and learning. “There is definitely a hunger on the part of women who want to join the platform.”

The platform currently offers two collections. Shurouq, the Arabic word for sunrise (a reference to both the brand’s launch and its inspiration), is Fromm’s flagship offering, shown at Milan Design Week last year. It includes Maryam Al Suwaidi’s Haima’ chair (£5,280) and Baida’ sofa (£9,240), which were partly inspired by the curves of desert dunes, along with minimalist side tables, shelving and a desk reminiscent of the Local architecture and the reflective tones of the desert. sunsets in polished metals, imagined by self-taught artist Shua’a Ali. The designer’s Maiz coffee table (£5,016) incorporates an incense burner in a nod to the rituals of her culture.

We focus on Qatari culture and telling those stories in a modern way.

Al Suwaidi, who is working on a range of new cushions for the brand, says the partnership with Rachid and Fromm has been a game-changer. “I have been given the opportunity to express my creativity and take an active role in the growth design scene in Qatar. I was able to travel to Italy and immerse myself in prototyping and production,” she says. “Being physically present means we are all part of the art and craft.”

Fromm also offers Wanas (a term that loosely refers to social gatherings in Arabic), a collection of accessories (priced at £19 for a cup of coffee) that emerged from a design competition at the Doha headquarters of the Virginia CommonwealthUniversity. It was won by Qatari designer Noora Al Melhim, who explores regional culture and craft practices in her work. The pieces, which include a ceramic coffee set, cake plate, candle and incense burner, allude to the traditions of Qatari craftsmanship and coffee culture.

Rachid is delighted with the response. “I remember the first day we sold a Haima chair.” It was exhibited at Rossana Orlandi in Milan and a few weeks later it was sold,” he says. “The excitement on the designer’s face was great.”

The businessman’s vision is to establish Fromm as a design center not only for Qatar but for the entire region. “We started with Qatari designers and expanded to regional talents, but now Italian and Turkish designers are coming in,” he reveals. “Sales are spreading little by little between Milan and Doha. The enthusiasm and interest are great: this is what I want to see. It is the opportunity I want to give.”

Harnessing Qatar’s rich artisanal history is also a priority for Rachid. “We’re certainly focused on Qatari culture and telling those stories in a modern way,” he explains. An example of this is the Step Seating Sadu collection (seating that fits into a staircase), which adorns the stairwell of the M7 atrium. “We use local Sadu fabric [an embroidery form in geometrical shapes hand-woven by Bedouin people] but reinterpreted… It’s so beautiful, and people can come in and sit on the stairs.”

A new collection will be launched in November: an eight-piece Ottoman Dream collection designed exclusively for the Turkish retailer. Beymen by Italian artist Antonio Aricò, in collaboration with Rüya Akyol and Abdulrahman Al Muftah. The set includes an armchair, a bench, a coffee table, rugs and lamps, but the most notable piece is the cotton and velvet Pavo sofa, inspired by the gardens next to the Bosphorus in Istanbul. “I was remembering my childhood memories, where the captivating beauty and vibrant colors of peacocks symbolized the eternal connection between Eastern and Western cultures,” says Aricò.

More designs will be launched next April in Milan, and Rachid has the US market in her sights. “There are a lot of things on our list, but it’s a matter of pacing ourselves,” he says of his global aspirations. “We are looking to expand the collection of ceramics, accessories and pieces for the dining room. For now we focus on Milan and Doha, but we believe that this will open doors for us,” he concludes. “I hope that one day we will be the leading platform for the world, and it will come from Msheireb, from Qatar. This is what I would be really proud of.”

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