full

Eastern market. In Dubai,

during the 1990s, you

were faced with two less-

than-appealing options

that forced the client to

compromise her experience.

You either compromised

on quality and service and

visited a very low-end salon

that offered a lot of services,

delivered in a care-free

manner, at a very low cost or

you opted for a five star hotel

that would offer an over-the-

top, spa-like experience, at

an inflated price. Inspired by

the nail bars I frequented in

What was the key

motivator for you to initially

embark upon your brand?

“The Nail Spa and

Marquee are totally home

grown concepts that I

am extremely proud of.

Coming from a family of

entrepreneurs I always

dreamt that one day I would

own my own business but I

could never have envisioned

it would grow to the extent

we have today. I owe it all to

the people who have been

involved in every process

and decision making along

the way, and the amazing

and truly loyal client

base we have gained and

sustained.”

LA, I set about reinventing

the concept with a new twist,

I developed something that

was previously unavailable

in the Middle East - the

N.Bar brand. What made

us different was my focus;

I wanted to provide an

affordable and efficient

service but with the level

of quality, hygiene, and

attention to detail you would

expect from a five star hotel,

our staff are friendly and

polite and have the greatest

technical ability.”

How do you feel

the beauty business has

evolved in Dubai in the past

decade?

“Beauty and Dubai work

in synergy. As the city has

grown, so has the size of

the grooming industry.

When you think of Middle

Eastern women you think

about glamor; grooming is

a way of life for these ladies

and with so many options

now readily available we are

How do you feel the

beauty business has evolved in

Dubai in the past decade?

“Clients have become more

discerning and expectations

have grown. Convenience now

plays a big factor in how clients

view beauty. We have managed

to raise the beauty bar meeting

and continually trying to exceed

expectations.”

Of your repertoire of

treatments, if you had to suggest only

one, what would that be and why?

“That is an extremely hard

question – each and every

one of our services has been

painstakingly created and lovingly

delivered – so it’s a difficult

choice!”

driven to excel, especially

when it comes to maintaining

and upholding our original

promise of hygiene, quality

and service – this is what

keeps our clients returning

for more.”

Of your repertoire

of treatments, if you had to

suggest only one, what would

that be and why?

“Of course it’s difficult

to choose just one, our

treatments and services

are carefully selected to

complement one another and

offer a holistic approach to

grooming! If I were to select

just one service it would have

to be the Essential Manicure

and Pedicure at N.Bar. The

N.Bar philosophy is ‘Fast

Glamour For Nails’ and this

signature service embodies

just that, it provides the

essential nail service that

we all need but with the

injection of N.Bar glamour

that our clients all know and

love!”

Shabana Karim

has been in UAE’s

beauty industry since

2002 and is the go-to

expert for nails and

hair.

Negin Fattahi-

Dasmal

established

her brand based

on a combination

of pure gut instinct

and a desire to raise

the standards of

grooming in the

region to a whole new

and unprecedented

level.

What was the key

motivator for you to initially

embark upon your brand?

“Upon returning from

LA, a place synonymous

with glamor and innovative

beauty services, I spotted a

blatant gap in the Middle

May/June 2015