NUDE KID ON THE BLOCK
Meet the unknown designer dressing showbiz’s sexiest bombshells
FOR Sunday night’s MTV Video Music Awards, Britney Spears donned an attention-grabbing, mostly sheer minidress. Not to be outdone was Nicki Minaj, who flaunted an equally eye-popping gown that landed the star on many a bestdressed list.
No, these gold body-hugging looks weren’t by red-carpet faves Atelier Versace or Givenchy. They were by a nearly unknown brand called LaBourjoisie, leaving fans asking: Who is that?
“The feeling of watching [Minaj and Spears] was overwhelming,” says Antoine Salameh, 35, the head designer and founder of LaBourjoisie, of two of his first-ever red-carpet looks. “I felt so proud that they chose to wear [dresses] from a Lebanese designer.”
And he should: It’s not often a name virtually unknown in the US scores celebrity coups of this caliber.
The brand currently has no stateside retailers, so celeb stylists and potential patrons must go through LA-based agency Style PR, which handles all sales for LaBourjoisie. They’re the ones who landed Salameh’s show-stopping looks on the VMA red carpet.
When Minaj’s stylist, Rushka Bergman, called the agency looking for the perfect sexy ensemble for the night, they sent over options from LaBourjoisie — and the barely there, gilded gown wowed.
A rep for Style PR says Spears’ leg-baring look was originally a full-length number, which the singer’s stylist, Jamie Schneider, had shortened at her request.
“[The result] depends on the customers and the trends with respect to the culture we live in,” says Salameh.
Born and raised in Lebanon, Salameh grew up dreaming of making it big in the fashion industry. His interest led him to CAMM Fashion Academy in Beirut. Today he lives in Kuwait, where he established LaBourjoisie in 2002.
Salameh’s brand caters to überaffluent women looking to stand out in a crowd — and who can afford to pay a king’s ransom. His custom-made dresses start at $10,000. (The figure for Minaj’s gown? A cool $15,000.) Along with Top-40 royalty, his clientele includes Mexican pop diva Gloria Trevi and Khloé Kardashian, who made headlines last week wearing a sheer LaBourjoisie bodysuit to boyfriend and Houston Rockets star James Harden’s birthday bash.
Says Salameh: “Our customers [are] fashionistas that love to glow at their events and be the center of attention.”