Leading modest clothing brand set to open boutique unit in Westfield Bradford
The UK’s leading modest clothing brand will become the first independent fashion label in its sector to open a store in a mainstream shopping centre.
Aab has today announced that it is to open a new concept store next month in the £260 million Westfield Bradford development called The Broadway which will be the largest store of its kind in the UK.
The company said the opening of the 2,500 sq ft retail store alongside household fashion brands such as H&M, Topshop and New Look was a sign of how mainstream the modest wear sector was becoming. Industry analysts have valued the UK modest clothing market at around £100 million annually.
The boutique unit will create 10 new jobs and will offer a full range of clothing and accessories alongside a bespoke and limited-edition collection exclusively for its clients.
The news comes just six months after a successful launch of its flagship London store in the new East Shopping Centre. Aab is also in advanced talks to open retail units in key international fashion hubs including the Middle East and Malaysia.
“This move into Westfield Bradford is a sign of the increasing consumer confidence in modest fashion and how increasingly mainstream it is becoming day-by-day,” said Nazmin Alim, Creative Director of Aab.
“As one of the pioneers in modest fashion we have taken the initiative of complementing our online presence with physical stores. This new boutique is aimed at satisfying consumer demand with trend-led designs, premium quality collections which are ethically produced and with modesty at the core.
“Westfield is synonymous with providing a world-class retail environment and we are delighted to have been accepted by them to be part of this new shopping centre and this is definitely part of our growth strategy for the Aab brand.
“Once we have settled into the new store we aim to concentrate on building our international footprint in Dubai and Malaysia.”
Aab has now started the process of fitting out the 2,500 sq ft retail space which will be fronted by an imposing eight metre wide double height frameless glass store front before the official opening on November 26.
The shop will open with a launch party featuring some of the biggest names and bloggers in modest fashion including Dina Tokio, Nabila Bee and Ruba Zai and will include the release of an exclusive range of winter coats. The launch event will also feature a guest appearance by Mariah Idrissi who became the first Muslim model in a hijab as the face of H&M’s recently launched adverts.
The company, founded in 2007, is based in London and is currently one of the world’s leading online retailers in the contemporary modest fashion clothing sector.
It creates original design pieces using its own in-house designers taking inspiration from global fashion trends. Aab places a strong emphasis on creating products using premium quality material and tailoring.
Its full collection of products include everything from modest clothing, abayas, hijabs and accessories with a customer base that now extends to the US, Canada, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Middle East.
Modest fashion is now one of the fastest growing sectors in the industry with some estimates valuing the UK market at around £100 million annually.
H&M recently launched its first advert showing a Muslim model in a hijab while British high-street department store House of Fraser started stocking ‘sporty hijabs’ in June this year.
In recent years, designers such as Hermes, Aramis, and Estée Lauder have targeted this sector with exclusive collections inspired by the Middle East. The Broadway shopping centre in Bradford will be the largest in the country to open this year with units taken up by flagship retailers such Marks & Spencer and Debenhams.
Other tenants include Superdry, H&M, Next, Topshop, Topman, New Look, Schuh, The Entertainer, Paperchase and River Island. It is set to open its doors on November 5.
