UAE-Based Platform Clout Serves As A Launchpad For Local Creative Entrepreneurs To Build And Grow Community-Driven Brands

As someone with more than a decade of experience working in the retail and fashion industry across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, Clout founder Faheem Muradin has been able to witness first-hand the struggles that new brands in this space face when they try to sell their products to third parties. "Despite the ease of e-commerce solutions like Shopify, creators still struggle to launch their businesses," Muradin says. "And this hinders their creative processes. I'm here to change that. With my expertise and experience, I want to empower the next Supreme to come from this region."

This is the drive with which Muradin set up Clout in the UAE in November last year. "Clout is the ultimate launchpad for the next generation of community-driven streetwear brands," Muradin says. "We're on a mission to put emerging brands from our region on the global map, but the saturated market can make it tough for newbies to break through. Traditional retail options are limited, and events like SoleDXB and Market Outside the Box make you wait a whole year just to participate. That's where we come in. We're the solution for brand founders who want to focus on creating fresh fashion, while we handle the rest."

With Clout, Muradin is thus aiming to harness the power of community to enable the launch and growth of brands in the streetwear domain. "Streetwear is all about community, and we're bringing that vibe to our customers and founders alike," Muradin explains. "Imagine it as Market 3.0, where brands have more freedom to express themselves, and customers have a more immersive experience. It's the new age marketplace for the new generation, where traditional e-commerce is left behind for a tailored brand experience."

Source: Clout

But how does Clout actually do this? "At Clout, we understand that the offline and online experience are intrinsically linked," Muradin replies. "That's why we've created POP, an expertly curated community event, bringing together the region's hottest new brands and artists for an immersive and unforgettable six hours of style, streetwear, live art, food, music, and inspiration. Staged in collaboration with Duette Studio, a premier creative lab based in Dubai, POP brings together a carefully curated selection of new and emerging streetwear brands, providing an opportunity for customers to feel like they're a part of something special and exclusive."

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Now, the proof of the pudding is in the eating- and Clout thankfully has the evidence to back up all of its assertions. Clout has staged two installments of POP in Dubai so far- the first was with the Dubai Mall-located eatery, Public, while the second was situated in front of the Museum of the Future as a collaboration with burger joint, Salt. Seen at these events were the likes of Daily Paper co-founder Hussein Suleiman and Les Benjamins founder Bünyamin Aydin, and not to mention the choicest names in the local music scene like Abri, Freek, and more. "At our first event, we managed to onboard 16 new and upcoming brands, and we were also able to attract over 650 visitors," Muradin reveals. "At our second, we had around 40 new brands and artists, and we attracted over 2,000 people. This showed us that there is a demand for a platform that helps new brands, and that people are interested in finding out more about these brands."

Clout has collaborated with dubai-based premium creative lab duette studio to stage pop, an event series that brings together a carefully curated selection of new and emerging streetwear brands. Source: Clout

It's worth noting here that Clout's wins have come while it's only just getting started as an enterprise- it thus seems safe to say that the rest of us should be keeping our eyes peeled for what this startup gets up to next.

Eureka! Faheem Muradin on how to make an idea a great one

Find a problem and solve it "Problems can easily be found, based on personal experience, or within your own circle. Take that problem, and see if anyone is currently tackling that problem. If yes, can you do it better? If no, you go, and try to solve it."

One idea gives birth to the next one "There are no bad ideas. Each idea has some form of value that leads you to the next or better idea. Sometimes, an idea can seem too crazy, but as you're getting closer to potentially finding a solution for problem, it will actually start to make sense and become feasible."

Follow whatever you believe in "Many people will disagree with your idea, or they might even think it's a failure from the start. It's important that you stay true to your idea, as you have gone through the experience of facing the problem. Not every idea comes from statistics; they can come from passion and experience."

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