H&M just made a bold move by featuring a hijabi model as part of its latest ad campaign.
The “Close the Loop” campaign features Mariah Idrissi alongside a Sheikh, plump model, amputee model, transgender model and a group of Sikh models.
When asked as to why does she think her role is garnering more spotlight than the others, Mariah told Fusion, “It might be because hijab fashion has boomed in the last few years and to finally see a hijabi [a woman who wears a hijab] in mainstream fashion is a big achievement.”
Mid this year, Mango released their Ramadan collection and Uniqlo partnered with Hana Tajima, a Muslim designer.
Idrissi started to wear the hijab when she was 17. She actually got a permission from her parents to be in the said ad. She also pointed out how H&M crew handled her shoot with respect. “[H&M] asked how much in terms of neck I could show, but to be honest they were very respectful.”
Brands are seeing the potentials of the Islamic market. Thus, the move to look into new strategies and tactics as to how to approach it is becoming more important. With the industry opening up to Muslims, there will be more opportunities to savor in the coming days. Idrissi has just become one of the reasons for this.
