Susan Sabet

A prominent figure in Middle Eastern and North African fashion media, Susan Sabet has also played a key role in building Egypt’s fashion industry infrastructure. Having co-founded the Egyptian Fashion & Design Council, she helped launch Egypt Fashion Week in 2023 and became lead organiser of the event. Sabet previously served as managing director and editor-in-chief of Elle Egypt when the edition launched in 2024. By 2026, she had moved on from the title and was editor-at-large at Saudi-based pan-Arab media platform Gems of Arabia. Earlier in her career, she was editor-in-chief of pioneering pan-Arab fashion and beauty glossy Pashion, which she founded in 2003. Before embarking on her career in publishing at Cleo magazine, Sabet had stints in design and production at her mother’s childrenswear factory and advertising at TMI.

Sabet’s impetus for starting Pashion, which was distributed in nine Arab countries, came when she noticed a gap in the market. Although based in Cairo, the magazine’s reach extended beyond Egypt to affluent consumers, boutiques and spas across the Arabic-speaking world. This included readers in markets that were harder for brands to penetrate, such as Jordan and Oman, as well as loyal Egyptian readers who turned out each year for Cairo’s Fashion Nights, a shopping festival she founded. Positioning Pashion as a seasonal shopping guide, Sabet built an enviable distribution network, which she used to help designer brands stage trunk shows in Kuwait, Dubai and Riyadh.