Lebanese couturier Elie Saab on designing beauty

Elie Saab has achieved the supposedly unachievable. The designer has built his independent fashion brand, which has its origins in his home country of Lebanon, into a mutilation-dollar lifestyle business. At its heart is luxurious clothing desired by some of the world’s wealthiest, and most discriminating, women – indeed, Saab was the star of a recent Paris Haute Couture week. He speaks to LUX Editor-in-Chief Darius Sanai about how he overcame cultural and commercial challenges to thrive in this most challenging of industries, by focusing on simply creating beauty.