DUBAI: A cavalcade of social media influencers and fashionistas descended upon AlUla on Sunday to celebrate the launch of Dior Beauty’s Sauvage scent, including Mahmoud Sidani, more commonly known to his legion of followers as “Mr. Moudz,” Emirati twins Mohammed and Humaid Hadban, Mohamed Al-Habtoor, Saudi designer Mohammed Khoja and actor Rawkan Binbella, among others.
The influencer-filled bash was staged outdoors against the backdrop of AlUla’s stunning cliffs and mountains, with “Dior” projected onto the landmark’s famous Elephant Rock.
Guests were treated to a dinner followed by a live performance from UAE-based blues singer Jay Abo, who wowed the audience with his mesmerizing vocals and guitar solos.
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The scene immediately evoked the image of Dior brand ambassador Johnny Depp playing an electric guitar in the middle of the desert in the Sauvage ad campaign, which came out this summer.
“I really feel so grateful being here,” Sidani told his 215,000 Instagram followers. “The sights we saw today left me speechless… I didn’t realize how much I missed traveling before this trip. Seeing new places, meeting new faces, hearing their stories — and sharing some of my own.”
The new scent, conceived by master perfumer Francois Demachy, was inspired “by the desert in the magical hour of twilight,” so it only makes sense for the Parisian label to stage the event at AlUla.
Indeed, the UNESCO World Heritage Site has become a hotspot for fashion houses.
Last year, Monot creative designer Lebanese Eli Mizrahi produced a campaign in the historic site featuring supermodels Kate Moss, Mariacarla Boscono, Candice Swanepoel, Jourdan Dunn, Amber Valletta, Xiao Wen and Alek Wek.
Meanwhile, Piaget’s Ramadan campaign for their latest Possession collection was partly filmed in AlUla.