“Sexiness is a woman who is concerned about others, a woman who wants to live a life of purpose. She is someone who is crazy enough to think she can make a real change in her society. She's a positive force and is determined to leave the world a better place than she found it. To that woman, we proudly serve you with love.” This is how El-Mosalami sisters, the masterminds behind Pepla, defined sexiness.
Upon hearing the awesome news of Pepla being picked by Debenhams to be one of its official brands, we sat down with Dina and Farah El-Mosalami, the founders of the local brand. We talked about the conception of Pepla, their upbringing, the Debenhams milestone, and more.
Pepla’s story dates back to the sisters’ childhood in the US. The girls were raised in a small all-American town in Iowa, where they were the only Arabs and Muslims there. In the mid-90s, Hollywood, as well as fashion brands, promoted the idea of being sexy, associating this with being skinny, blonde hair, and showing skin.
“So, we grew up feeling like if we didn't dress in a certain way or look a certain way, we wouldn't be beautiful,” Dina El-Mosalami told us. “If we wanted more modest clothing, we looked like our grandmothers.”
All that El-Mosalamis wanted was to wear clothes that are trendy but just more modest. But since all the big fashion labels didn’t cater to their needs, they decided to build one of their own! The sisters didn’t just dream of having the biggest modest fashion brand, they worked for it. They spent a lot of time researching the market needs until they found a gap. They figured out that there was a large enough segment that wanted to dress modestly, each for their own different reasons, but weren’t being served.
The AUC graduates, who studied business, spent four years afterwards studying fashion, along with different skill sets they needed for their business to come to life. Afterwards, they entered the Injaz Start-up Egypt Competition, won, and then launched Pepla; a brand that’s aimed at changing the common perception of beauty.
“We want girls to hear that living with purpose, making a difference in your society, that is what makes you beautiful,” the sisters said.
To hammer on their empowering message, Pepla constantly interviews influential, inspiring women who live with a purpose. Those incredible women include Sara Sabry, Nour El Sherbini, Hadeer Shalaby, and more. It’s safe to say that Pepla isn’t just a brand or shopping outlet, but rather a platform where these women get to share their stories and inspire younger girls.
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“We want younger girls to grow up looking up to women like these and create change in their communities too. We use our hashtags of #SexyMinds and #ShesGoingPlaces to redefine what sexy means,” El-Mosalamis added.
Even though their story isn’t over yet, but it’s indeed a success story worth celebrating. Next Friday, the 6th of March, marks a very important milestone for Pepla and its founders. This is when the brand will start showcasing at Debenhams, Cairo Festival City. The launching event starts at 5 pm, so if you’d like to support this pair of local hustlers, try to make it!
