Araiya
was conceived of and launched by sister duo Aaliya
and Arshiya Fakih. They come from a family, which
has contributed extensively to the garment industry.
After graduating from Sydenham College of Commerce
and Economics, each sister took to her own path in
honing their creativity.
Arshiya attended Sir J.J. School of Fine Arts, NIFT,
Mumbai and the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)
in New York. She interned with Ralph Lauren, and Onyx
Noir and worked full time with Neil Beiff. Aaliya
completed her diploma at the NIFT-Mumbai and then
went on to FIT, New York. Aaliya went on to work for
California Concepts - an export house in New York.
Araiya was formally launched on 6 November 1998 at
Hotel Marine Plaza in Mumbai. The overwhelming response
to Araiya's brand of fashion led to several other
showings of its collections. Within two months of
its launch, the city had recognized the founder designers
of Araiya - Aaliya and Arshiya, among the top 20 newsmakers
of the year 1998-1999. (As published in Mid-day, December
1998)
With the commencement of its operations in India,
the sisters extended their presence to the export
market. Araiya periodically exports its creations
to Saudi Arabia, Fiji Islands, South Africa, London
and New York.
Araiya is known for its hip and trendy western and
Indianwear, which is an effulgent combination of eveningwear
and casuals for the active women and men of tomorrow.
The designs are cast mostly in fabrics such as Polyester
and Cottons blended with Spandex and other knits such
as Jersey and Stretch Chiffon.
Araiya is entering a strategic tie-up with Eskay Knits
(India) Limited. They are going to undertake an extensive
brand building and brand awareness exercise that will
cover the entire country. To begin with they plan
to open one more retail outlet in Mumbai at Linking
Road along with an attached ' Araiya Café ', which
will be the first of it's kind in India. Over the
next year Araiya will have retail outlets in Delhi,
followed by Bangalore, Goa, and Madras. By the end
of three years Araiya will have 10 stores across all
metros and mini-metros in the country.
In addition to these outlets in Mumbai, they also
intend to start outlets in Dubai and franchises in
Los Angeles and New York.
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