RIYADH: Bearing a lotus logo, Saudi designer and stylist Saja Al-Yousef’s creations are inspired by the qualities of the flower, which symbolizes beauty, health, comfort, love, and optimism
SAJAS Boutique specializes in luxury jewelry, fashion, and bag collections designed as per international standards. Al-Yousef’s designs are a fusion of classical and modern styles.
She opened her main outlet in Al-Ahsa in Saudi Arabia and soon became an icon in the Saudi fashion world.
Al-Yousef said she was not satisfied with the products available around her. This dissatisfaction motivated her to launch her line of products to cater to the needs of the people who thought like her.
“I started to invent my style and challenged myself until I reached where I am now,” she told Arab News.
In 2004, SAJAS Boutique entered the fashion world with its first collection. In 2009, Al-Yousef went to Australia to pursue her master’s degree. During her 4-year stay in Australia, she attended several fashion courses, and met several fashion designers and icons, which enlightened her and shaped her thoughts and ideas about fashion.
In 2013, Al-Yousef worked as a stylist backstage during Riyadh Fashion Days. She then attended many courses in fashion, jewelry and bag design in the UK, Qatar, France, and Australia.
She started working on her first line of jewelry in 2014. In 2017, she researched leather products and visited several countries to study the feasibility of entering into the industry. In February 2019, she started her leather bags industry in Italy.
Al-Yousef mentioned that she had participated in many international jewelry events in the Gulf countries such as Bahrain’s Jewelry Arabia and Qatar’s Jewelry International Exhibition.
In 2017, Al-Yousef participated in the Jewelry Salon held in Riyadh and another event in Dubai.
In August 2018, Al-Yousef presented her bags collection at Harvey Nichols, London, during London Fashion Week.
“I participated in several fashion shows in Bahrain and Riyadh. In February 2019, I exhibited my designs in a showroom in Italy. In December 2019, I was selected by the Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA) to represent my brand in a showroom at Ritz-Carlton Riyadh,” said Al-Yousef.
Al-Yousef mentioned that her ambitions were boundless. “The sky is the limit,” she said.
She added that she hoped to share her vision and imagination with top brands and not confine herself to the local market.
“I think SAJAS products have gone through a lot of phases. Each product has a story and buyers are listeners who can understand the hard work that goes into each product,” she said.
