How Always and Nasiba Hafiz Created Saudi Arabia’s ‘Coolest’ Fashion Collection
When it comes to periods, they’re uncomfortable. Period. But in its latest campaign, menstrual hygiene brand Always was determined to use its knowledge of cooling materials to create clothing that would make that ‘time of the month’ more bearable for people in Saudi Arabia. Experiencing scorching temperatures during an already uncomfortable time, it was important to prioritise comfort and create a conversation around the generally hush-hush topic of menstruation.
In comes designer Nasiba Hafiz, who worked with Always and Leo Burnett to create ‘The Not Hot Collection’. The curated clothing line features a range of items, all made from cooling fabrics with flowy silhouettes, bright colours and prints – to be both cooling and stylish during ‘Hot Girl Summer’. Featuring gloves, scrunchies, cycling shorts and more, the collection keeps heat tech in mind, promoting cooling materials and comfortable living. To put each garment to the test, the campaign video was shot in the Saudi desert in August, pushing not only the clothes but the models and the equipment to the limit.
Natasha Maasri, Leo Burnett Lebanon’s executive creative director and Nasiba tell LBB’s Nisna Mahtani what it was like to celebrate a taboo topic in the region, the wonderful response they received and why spending 15 hours in the desert is “no joke”.
LBB> What initially started the conversation around this collaboration? And what was the aim of the project?
Natasha> We were challenged to create hype around the Always Cool & Dry pad innovation. The technology that goes into this product is amazing, but we needed to engage people in an unexpected way given that talking about sanitary pads is still taboo in parts of the Middle East.
The ultimate goal of the collection is to make people more comfortable when temperatures get extreme. The pad only covers part of their skin, but all their skin is affected by the heat. So, we decided to create the world’s first designer period wear. It’s completely fresh territory for Always, and we needed a super fresh designer to bring our idea to life.
LBB> How did you think of using the fabric from a pad to create a line of ‘cool’ clothing?
Natasha> It’s all about the product and the unique properties of Always Cool & Dry. We used a fabric that mimics the performance of the pad and is also called ‘Cool & Dry’. The fabric even looks exactly like the top sheet of our pad, the collection is virtually a demo of our product.
LBB> Can you tell us more about the fabric and colour palette? What material(s) did you use, and what part did Always have to play?
Nasiba> The colours we selected together with the Always team were very much inspired by the pack, but in general, mixing colours and prints is part of my creative process and how I like to design. For the ‘Not Hot Collection’, the team trusted my vision and how I wanted to translate this cool and dry feeling the pad delivers, into fashion. The design process took place during the hottest month of the year in Saudi, so I got inspired by the heat and felt its impact. I started thinking of the colours and materials that would bring me joy and make me feel a little better. Flowy silhouettes were a big part of the design, and at the same time, it had to be cool and active.
LBB> Were there any designers or existing collections of clothing that inspired the ‘cool’ collection? Or perhaps fabric that Always had previously experimented with?
Nasiba> Designing the ‘Not Hot Collection’ was a challenge at first as I’ve never worked with this type of fabric before. But I thought of Stella McCartney and how as a vegetarian part of her designer vision is that she never harms animals, and I realised how sometimes the challenge is what makes something so special in the end.
LBB> The pieces are quite colourful and eye-catching, was that always the vision? And how did you go about showcasing the clothing collection in a fun way?
Natasha> The connection to the Always brand is intentionally playful and overt – we didn’t want to shy away from the fact that this is a collaboration between Always x Nasiba Hafiz. Nasiba loved the challenge of working with plain yet very bright fabrics, but the biggest appeal was the technology of the material and the idea of marrying style with function.
The playful tone we chose from the name of the collection is a riff on the ‘Hot Girl Summer’ trend, while the concept for the shoot was based on memes and videos shared by people in the GCC during summer to complain about the heat (eg. being able to bake cookies in the car, frying eggs on the sidewalk, fogged up glasses). Every single situation showcased in both the film and the photography was completely based on local internet culture. There was a very local comedic undertone to these situations, which resonated really well with women in the region.
LBB> The campaign was made with Saudi Arabian people in mind, how did that pay into the casting for the spot? And why was it important to bring this conversation to the country?
Natasha> Featuring Saudis was essential to us because we designed the collection with their needs in mind. We cast four Saudi influencers with interests in fashion, beauty, and lifestyle. The funny thing is that in the past, we struggled to find influencers to represent the brand in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia specifically, given the taboo surrounding period products. But with the Not Hot Collection, they were super happy to be involved.
We also saw the opportunity to feature the work of Saudi women. There’s of course Nasiba, known for pushing the fashion boundaries and designing for the modern Saudi woman, but also our photographer, Lina Mo. This was a collaboration completely designed by and for women in the GCC.
LBB> What were the temperatures like on location? And how did the models feel in their Always x Nasiba Hafiz’s ‘Not Hot Collection’ clothing?
Natasha> June through September are the hottest months with temperatures easily in the high 40s. The shoot was quite challenging: 15 hours in the Saudi desert in August is no joke, our pool started to melt, and the monitors were overheating. We had to work around it, taking a lot of breaks, for people but also sometimes for the equipment.
Having the influencers experience how the clothes feel on their skin under extreme temperatures was actually a very strong ‘torture test’. One of them said, “it feels like I’m wearing a cloud”.
LBB> How have people responded to the campaign? Were there any reactions which surprised you?
Natasha> The reactions were great, we hadn’t seen that type of engagement, especially given the taboo nature of the subject. I think the most surprising part was the number of positive reactions, the collaboration was really something unexpected and that was super well received, I might even dare say they loved it. The collection is being sold on Nasiba’s website and every time an item is bought, a sample Always Cool & Dry pack is sent with the piece, so that people can feel the whole Not Hot experience.
LBB> Would you like to share anything else with us?
Natasha> The collection has many details that were very carefully thought through, like pockets that perfectly fit the pad and accessories, driving gloves and car seats to keep skin protected from scorching temperatures inside the car, bicycle shorts to be worn under dresses, even hair scrunchies – everything the modern Saudi woman needs to be ‘Not Hot’ in summer, or on their period.
