Nez Gebreel is the CEO of the Dubai Design and Fashion Council. With experience in IP concept creation, commercialization, and new business development across a wide range of industries including fashion, music, sport, television, and talent management, both in-house for established companies and as well as in start-up environments, Gebreel’s creativity and business savvy make her adept at managing complex relationships amongst key business stakeholders. Gebreel’s body of work in both Western and Middle Eastern cultures makes her ideally positioned to spearhead strategy in the region’s creative sectors.

Shashi Menon is the Founder and CEO of Nervora, one of the Middle East’s premier publishers of luxury and lifestyle content and the publisher of Vogue Arabia.

Born and raised in the USA, Mr. Menon has lived or done business in 20+ countries across North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Mr. Menon has been in the Middle East since 2007, initially as a management consultant, then in a strategy and business development role with the UAE government.

In 2009, Mr. Menon founded Nervora. In 2012, Nervora partnered with Condé Nast to launch Style.com/Arabia, its first fashion and beauty publication in the Middle East. One year later, he spearheaded the launch of Style.com/Arabia/MEN. In 2015, Nervora expanded further with the launch of POPSUGAR and ShopStyle in the Middle East. In Fall 2016, Nervora will launch Vogue Arabia online, followed by a print launch in Spring 2017.

Caterina Minthe is the Features Director of Vogue Arabia.

Minthe is currently the Managing Editor of Style.com/Arabia, which is being re-launched as Vogue Arabia in Fall 2016; she has been with Style.com/Arabia since its inception. In her role as Managing Editor, Minthe oversees editorial content, covers in-depth interviews with industry heavyweights, advocates emerging talent across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and reports live during international and regional fashion weeks.

Prior to Style.com/Arabia, Minthe worked at two Dubai-based fashion magazines and also lived in Mexico, Egypt, and Uganda, where she operated as an emerging market cultural correspondent for The Times and The Washington Post. A polyglot, TedX speaker, and violinist, Minthe is based between Paris and Dubai and lives with her husband, their two young children, and a boisterous Italian greyhound, Emile.

Stephanie Horton is the Chief Marketing Officer of Farfetch, and a member of its Executive Leadership team. She leads Farfetch's global marketing and communications strategy, with direct responsibility for corporate communications and public relations, brand and category marketing, strategic partnerships, as well media, advertising, and marketing operations including editorial, VIP and social media.

A 20-year veteran of the luxury fashion and marketing communities, Stephanie has developed and executed creative marketing solutions for both domestic and international brands. She started her career in the fashion office of Dayton Hudson/Marshall Fields in Chicago in various merchandising capacities for designer/ couture clothing and sportswear. She later moved into marketing and promotions, and served as Account Director at Draft Worldwide in Chicago and then as Marketing Director at The New York Times Co. where she specialised in marketing luxury brands and creating new revenue streams for the newspaper. Following this she joined Vogue where she was the Executive Director of Creative Services and Communications, overseeing a team that developed and executed marketing and launch strategies as well as promotions and events for Vogue and all clients advertising in Vogue.

Prior to Farfetch Stephanie was the Head of Global Communications at Shopbop.com, responsible for developing and executing Shopbop’s global communications and PR strategy for the US, China, Australia, Russia, Japan and Western Europe.

Stephanie currently serves on the Ailey Ambassadors Committee, for Alvin Ailey, the benefit committee for The Studio Museum in Harlem, The Advisory Board of the Moyer Foundation and The Art of Elysium Gala Committee.

Stephanie holds an M.B.A in marketing from DePaul University, Chicago, and a B.B.A. in finance from The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and resides between London and New York.

Anya Ziourova grew up in Saint Petersburg. At the age of 18, she moved to New York to begin her career as an intern in the accessory department of American Vogue. Not long afterwards, she was offered a full-time position as Fashion Assistant and subsequently Fashion Stylist at Japanese and Chinese Vogue. During this period, Ms. Ziourova was also asked to contribute to Condé Nast's newly launched Russian Tatler, and in 2009 she was announced as its Fashion Director. She went on to be named Creative Fashion Consultant for Allure Russia in 2012, and she was announced as Executive Editor at Large for online retailer Farfetch earlier this year.

Ms. Ziourova has contributed to an array of international editions of Vogue (Spain, India, Australia, America, Japan, China, and Ukraine), Vanity Fair, Muse, and Glamour. Up until now, she has also worked alongside a diverse group of international fashion photographers including Patrick Demarchelier, Norman Jean Roy, Arthur Elgort, Guy Aroch, Regan Cameron, Pamela Hanson, Raymond Meier, Giampaolo Sgura, Paola Kudacki, Kenneth Willardt, Russell James, and Maciek Kobielski.

A consultant for various fashion brands, Ms. Ziourova has a portfolio that spans Neiman Marcus, Ben Sherman, Lancaster, and Sally LaPointe, as well as Coca Cola and one of the UK's largest department stores, John Lewis. She has also worked with celebrities Sharon Stone, Amanda Seyfried, Tina Fey, Marina Abramović, Sofía Vergara, Diane Kruger, Mia Wasikowska, Katy Perry, Monica Bellucci, and Camilla Belle.

Patrick Chalhoub is the Joint CEO of the Chalhoub Group, the Middle East’s largest luxury fashion group. Headquartered in Dubai, the Chalhoub Group manages over 400 stand-alone retail outlets and department stores within the fashion, beauty, and luxury gift sectors.

Mr. Chalhoub began his career in 1979 when he decided to become involved in the realization of his father’s vision to build a bridge between the East and West and be the ambassador of luxury lifestyle in the region. For nearly 30 years, Mr. Chalhoub has spearheaded the strategic development of the business; he continues to expand the group’s distribution, retail business, marketing, and communications activities. Today, Mr. Chalhoub oversees the retail operations of fashion houses such as Louis Vuitton, Nina Ricci, Marc Jacobs, and Carolina Herrera within the UAE and wider Gulf region.

At the age of 42, the French government awarded Mr. Chalhoub with the medal of Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite.

Zuhair Murad is a Lebanese fashion designer raised in Baalbek, Lebanon. His Parisian training combined with his unique love of the Middle Eastern woman inspired him to open a single atelier in Beirut in 1997. The designer’s lavish creations caught the attention of national press and high society, and, shortly thereafter, the international fashion scene. Mr. Murad’s first appearance on the catwalks of Rome at Alta Roma Fashion week in Italy led to a collection at Haute Couture Fashion Week in Paris, and the designer became known for his signature sumptuous evening dresses and use of fabrics, color, and embroidery. Mr. Murad launched his ready-to-wear collection in 2005, a simpler yet equally glamorous contemporary line that today retails at major department stores worldwide. Mr. Murad’s red carpet-ready creations are particularly favored by the likes of international socialites and Hollywood celebrities.

For over a decade, Roland Mouret has created the most covetable of womenswear collections. Born in Lourdes, France, Mr. Mouret grew up working alongside his father in a butcher’s shop—and it was this experience that acquainted him with fabric, and the art of draping it in particular. He would watch the folding of the butcher’s apron, and notice how patterns would form across the white linen. Now an established fashion designer, Mr. Mouret’s approach, technique, and aesthetic are still defined by these early memories. With just three months of training at a Parisian fashion college behind him, the designer opted to drape fabric over the body rather than draw sketches—a trait he has become renowned for. Mr. Mouret unveiled his Galaxy dress amid his Spring 2006 collection. Celebrated for its flattering silhouette, the dress has been spotted on an array of celebrities, including Blake Lively, Cameron Diaz, and Rachel Weisz. The famed piece celebrated its 10th anniversary last year—a milestone that Mr. Mouret honored with an exclusive, five-piece, limited edition capsule collection. The iconic dress has earned Mr. Mouret a reputation as a magician, master of structure, and a man who possesses an intuitive understanding of the female form.

Appointed in July 2015 as Chief Executive Officer of Browns, Holli Rogers is responsible for developing and driving the Browns business objectives and strategy through leadership of the Browns management team and the Board of Directors.

Holli was a founding member of Net-A-Porter, having joined in 2002. Over 12 years, 8 of which she served as fashion and buying director, Holli was in charge of the global buying strategy for all womenswear, fine jewelry and accessories. Her work included key projects such as the launch into the US and Asia, both necessitating dedicated websites and territory-based distribution centers. Holli also established and led the buying direction for the launch of The Outnet in 2009 and Mr Porter in 2011.

Having grown up in Texas, Holli started her career on the prestigious buying training program at Neiman Marcus’ Dallas Head Quarters before moving to New York for a role with Chanel. Holli is also a judge for the British Fashion Council Awards.

Fashion powerhouse Nevena Borissova opened the original Curve boutique in 1997 in Los Angeles on the then nondescript Robertson Boulevard. From day one Nevena's mission has been to sell style, not trends. Heralded as one of the best buyers and merchandisers in the business, as well as an international trendsetter, the industry considers Nevena as a bellwether of fashion and looks to Curve for the season’s most promising designer mix.

Over the last 15 years the Curve brand has grown from a single stand alone store on Robertson Boulevard in Los Angeles into a bi-coastal mini-empire with satellite stores in Miami Beach, San Francisco, New York, a seasonal pop-up in Sag Harbor, and its newest location in the Malibu Country Mart. Curve has been known to help launch the careers of many designers and was one of the first stores in the U.S. to carry designers such as Alexander Wang, Isabel Marant, Mugler, and David Koma. Curve currently stocks leading designers such as Peter Pillotto, Mary Katrantzou, Christopher Kane, Balmain, Valentino, Isabel Marant, IRO, ACNE, Ellery Dion Lee, David Koma, Erickson Beamon, and Tom Binns. In 2015, Borissova opened her first lifestyle store in the Hayden Track in Culver City, Los Angeles.

Nevena was selected as one of the "Vogue 100" — a group of women hand-selected by American Vogue magazine who are considered as influential decision makers and opinion leaders known for their distinctive taste in fashion and culture. Curve has been a Harper’s Bazaar style leader since 2006, and was one of the only two American boutiques shortlisted for “Outstanding Brand Mix” at the 2010 WGSN Global Style Awards. Nevena also collaborated on the first “Visionaries” collection with Genetic Denim, creating some of its best-selling styles to date. Additionally, Nevena has helped bring international attention to the plight of war-affected youth in the Congo through her partnership with Falling Whistles, a non-profit organization that fights for the rehabilitation of Congolese children.

Ramzi Tabiat is the Creative Director of Al Ostoura, a retail power house and Kuwait’s luxury fashion leader. Al Ostoura boasts over 150 exclusive brands at its namesake concept store, and operates an additional 40 luxury retail outlets including Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Alaïa, and Chloé. Mr. Tabiat—a front row regular—has a flair for recognizing the talents of tomorrow. He has been championing designers such as Delpozo, Ellery, Mary Katrantzou, and Madiyah Al Sharqi since the conception of their brands and the launches of their debut collections. Mr. Tabiat has a strategic and creative mind with an avant-garde eye for fashion, retail and innovation. Both his multi-disciplinary skills and unparalleled vision have contributed significantly to the growth of the Al Ostoura group—a legacy that started in 1985 and continues to triumph.