LUNÈS embodies a design ethos that blends sensual femininity with couture sensibility, seamlessly marrying ready-to-wear with haute couture. The designs exude couture elegance while providing exceptional comfort, because authentic luxury starts with feeling your best.

LUNÈS, founded by Leila Founes is a Parisian-born label which has moved to Dubai, draws inspiration from ballet and celebrates the beauty of the woman's’ body in motion.

ABOUT THE FOUNDER

Leila Founes was born in 1992 in Paris to a French father and French-Syrian-Turkish mother. She moved to Dubai with her parents and brother at the age of three and led an expat lifestyle living between Rome and Dubai during her childhood.

She had quite an unusual career background as she did not always work in design. After graduating from high school, she moved to London where she studied International Politics at King’s College London and soon after started interning at ‘The New York Times’. However, her love for creating could not be stopped as she attended evening classes studying jewellery and fashion design whenever she could.

Eventually she decided to enrol full time at ESMOD Paris to study fashion design. After only 2 years she began working at Christian Dior Couture alongside creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri and her team. During her time at Dior she worked on numerous collections and special projects including creating custom made designs for Rihanna, Serena Williams, Jennifer Lawrence and Charlize Theron to name a few. Besides creating designs for RTW and Haute Couture collections, one of the most significant projects she developed involved creating ballet costumes for the dancers at the Guggenheim Museum and the Opera of Rome.

It was during the ballet at the Opera of Rome that she had a breakthrough, when she could see the ballet costumes in full motion. She had practiced ballet for over a decade when she was younger and always loved the delicacy of being a ballerina.

“My vision is to merge couture elements whilst simultaneously embracing movement that bring sculptural forms to life.”

- Leila Founes