NEJLA MATAM-FINN, 44
CEO and founder of The Fifth Collection
As one of the brains behind The Fifth Collection, a preloved fashion retail platform, Matam-Finn knows good style when she sees it. “Given my training, I am able to analyse what a designer is trying to achieve with a collection. My husband jokes that I am like a quantum computer when it comes to the history of any brand,” says Matam-Finn. Even though she loves designs from the likes of Yves Saint Laurent and Phoebe Philo, she is much more interested in the history behind a piece of clothing than actually wearing it. This fascination harks back to the days when as a poor student in Paris she would attend free conventions at the Louvre on the history of fashion with a panel of notable speakers from the industry. “One of them was Maria Luisa who was one of the first creators behind concept stores in the city. Listening to how she was able to merge fashion history with merchandising and commerce while creating a community before the 2000s really resonated with me,” says Matam-Finn. While Luisa continues to inspire the entrepreneur, Matam-Finn also enjoys the creativity of women who pop up on her social media feeds. There was a time when she looked up to Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn but realised that their perfect aesthethic could never be achieved. “I love seeing women in their 40s, 50s and 60s who are open to mixing and matching their clothes from extremely relatable brands and doing fun videos,” says Matam-Finn. “There’s this woman from the UK who shows off her look in the kitchen as she chops, mashes and dances—that’s cool.”
KACI BEH, 23
Model and student
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