Welcoming Haute Hijab to the Cue Ball Portfolio
Cue Ball is proud to announce our Series Seed lead investment in Haute Hijab, a direct-to-consumer fashion and lifestyle brand for Muslim women. We are joined in the round by Ludlow Ventures, Sinai Ventures, Maveron, Muse Capital, AngelList, and The Helm.
Haute Hijab was founded by Melanie Elturk and Ahmed Zedan in March 2010, and became their full-time pursuit in 2017. The company sells hijabs, headscarves worn by women of the Muslim faith, direct-to-consumer on their website, hautehijab.com. Their hijab options are varied, ranging from underscarves made of innovative performance fabrics to everyday patterned hijabs and luxury hijabs for special occasions. Haute Hijab releases a new collection of hijabs each Tuesday for women to update their wardrobe according to new fashion trends.
Melanie and Ahmed founded Haute Hijab because they realized that a dominant global hijab brand does not yet exist. Muslim women, who can wear up to four hijabs per day and commonly own up to 150, are currently resigned to purchasing commodity-level hijabs from street-corner purveyors around the world, or retrofitting scarves from fast-fashion retailers like H&M. While some major brands are beginning to offer hijabs within their existing lines, the true demand is for hijabs made, branded, and marketed by Muslims, for Muslims.
Two tenets of Cue Ball’s investment philosophy are people and purpose, and Haute Hijab is an excellent match in our search for incredible founders and compelling impact. Melanie and Ahmed are incredibly passionate and capable founders with the unique potential to build a forward-looking and durable brand speaking directly to Muslim women. Melanie’s powerful social media presence for Haute Hijab is the result of 20+ years’ experience in sourcing, styling, and selling hijabs. She has been published by CNN, Elle, and the New York Times as a thought leader in modest fashion. In addition, Melanie’s experience as an international contracts and civil rights attorney and Ahmed’s previous three VC-backed companies make us confident that they are capable of managing an impressive business.
Haute Hijab is also a mission-driven company, with the goal of breaking down stereotypes and creating a “global community that celebrates and empowers the hijab-wearing woman.” Haute Hijab is changing the narrative of Muslim women by elevating a staple of their wardrobe into functional and fashionable pieces, inspiring women to live confidently and embrace self-expression.
The Cue Ball team was immediately impressed by Melanie and Ahmed’s vision for the brand and progress in developing an uplifting community for Muslim women. We look forward to supporting them as they build a truly inclusive, category-defining, and culturally-shaping company.
