Sharifwear Store

Sharifwear: Nourhan Sharif’s New Store

By: Kaitlin Hines

Nourhan Sharif has long been a staple in the greater New York belly dance community – as well as all over the world. An accomplished performer, teacher, choreographer, designer, manager and businesswoman with degrees in International business and Social Work, Nourhan wears many hats. Her Sharifwear dancewear line, featuring practice wear and accessories for belly dancers and salsa dancers has been on a steady rise since its initial launch in 2002. In September 2009, circumstance allowed her to open up a Sharifwear store in Long Island City in the Queens borough of New York. Between a successful opening, a benefit concert and her extensive daily schedule, I caught up with her to chat over the phone about the beginnings of Sharifwear, her career, and gush about my favorite pair of Sharifwear pants.

KH: First things first – how long have you been dancing and when did you begin teaching?

Nourhan: I’ve been dancing since I was 2 years old – in diapers – Raks Sharqi. My mother danced under the name of “ Shahunda”. She was my first teacher in Rhode Island with 500 students coming through her studio! I was an only child so I really had no choice but to go to the school with her (laughs). I became an Arab by osmosis! I started teaching a children’s class at 8 years old. However, I feel that my first real teacher was a ballerina turned bellydancer, Morwenna Assaf. She’s the one who sent me to New York 20 years ago and I learned a great deal from her I am forever grateful; she now lives in San Diego.

KH: You have traveled extensively. What made you finally decide to settle in New York?

Nourhan: I’ve traveled by myself extensively, also with Yousry Sharif. I moved to New York to be with him full time – that’s how it always is – you end up moving somewhere to be with a man! Most women in NY end up here for that reason! (the ones that were not raised here)

KH: Exactly – or to pursue some kind of dreams of fortune and fame…

Nourhan: Or to eat strips of pizza, tuna fish (low budget living in a small apartment) and dance ten hours a day…!

KH: So, you chose Queens as the location for the new store – what was the connection there?

Nourhan: The people who occupied the front of where my manufacturing plant is moved out and I had to pay the rent! It wasn’t planned….. It happened by chance. Long Island City (LIC) is an area that is being gentrified and a good place for a store ! My Warehouse is still in Astoria, New York, anyhow both are 15 minutes from Midtown Manhattan by subway and they are close to each other.

KH: Where do you manufacture from?

Nourhan: I manufacture 75% from here in New York City and the remaining 25% from Argentina, Asia and Egypt. I pick out all the fabrics for the designs. I am very anal retentive about it. We do almost all of our sewing here which increases the quality tremendously! You lose some control when you sub contract out. As for the designs, I know what the dancer needs and how the fabric needs to move because of my history as an entrepreneur within the dance. I’ll have a sample maker draw it, because I can’t draw, and then we’ll move on toward making a garment.

KH: It sounds extensive.

Nourhan: You know there are about 25 steps between starting with the raw material and the final product. Not an easy process!

KH: Did you design practice wear for yourself?

Nourhan: I was going to teach in Europe and I had nothing to wear. My personal performance costumes had always hand made by Shadia of Boston. My chest was large and I never fit in off the rack costumes from Egypt so I asked her to make my initial sample, which was a plain choli in 1998. She was a single mother with 2 small girls at the time so she did not want to partner with me so I started Sharifwear alone which was scary because I knew how to dance, and what was needed in the market but not how to sew! My learning curve has been an adventure to say the least.

KH: When did you start the Sharifwear line?

Nourhan: My first actual top was created around 2002. I started with one top and began mass-producing in 2002. This is my staple “Gypsy Top” and it has remained a favorite! Many ladies tell me they have had the top for years and years and it doesn’t wear out!

KH: Were you always interested in fashion?

Nourhan: Well, I was voted best dressed in high school not sure if that counts! I could always put colors together well. I have an MBA in International Business and an MSW in Social Work. I’ve always been a big advocate for women’s rights; I remember leaving a workshop once to go march in Washington DC for the NOW organization. I worked in Domestic Violence and then with Aids impacted families later on. I don’t have a fashion degree, but I do take courses at FIT whenever possible. With designing, you often just experiment. It’s like when you are designing a house – you hire an architect to plan it out for you, but then you walk through with a punch list of how things should really be– I hire people to draw and sew for me and I have a hard working assistant, Veronica who is amazing. As I said before I’ve always had a lot of input in my costumes, though Shadia actually did the physical labor on my costumes she always involved me in the details I learned much from her and all of the folks around me still on a daily basis!

KH: So, exactly how many people do you have sewing for you now?

Nourhan: It’s hard to put a number on it; it fluctuates during the seasons. I subcontract some out, obviously I’m still basically functioning as a small business, and I supervise everything still. I can definitely be considered a micromanager, but I really can’t send out another person to buy the right fabric for the designs. To make things work, I have to be involved in the details of the process. I love what I do. I work 7 days a week, still I teach a woman how to dance, dress her and counsel/coach her in many cases. It is both a responsibility and a privilege I don’t take lightly I have impacted women’s lives and I see the results all over the place!

KH: Do you have a most popular piece you’ve designed?

Nourhan: I think the gypsy top is probably the most popular top. Also I have a lot of ‘plus size’ ladies who thank us for plus size designs, saying ‘I feel sexy, and I feel beautiful’. That’s the philosophy of my line. It’s not just making one type of woman feel beautiful. You know I just had a big fashion show benefit for Dr’s. Without Borders on October 4, 2009 (we raised $6000 for Gaza) and I had women of all ages, sizes and ethnicities in it, which were students of mine trained by a professional runway model. They rocked in every way!

Sharifwear is made for ‘Divas that Dance’ and they come in all shapes and sizes. When I see a woman who is happy and she feels sexy, it’s very rewarding. It’s like I’m giving something back. You know, the average size of a woman in America is large – especially when you get to the middle of the country – we are size 12 and up. I think it’s similar in the U.K also. If you open up Vogue, the average picture shows a size 2 woman! No average women have been in those photos. I’m dealing with real women who want quality dancewear at a reasonable price. I don’t want to be a full-fledged costume designer, it is very expensive and there is hardly space for it in New York. We do carry some in the store as a courtesy and for the convenience of my students. Aida Nour, Raqia Hassan, Joharah and Audrenna all have costumes in my store. If I need to dance, Shadia will design something unique for me to wear but I am semi-retired from performing at this point due to all of my other duties which include promoting many Egyptian Artists and managing Mohamed El Hosseny in North America plus teaching and designing Sharifwear!

KH: So one last question before you go – can you tell the readers what hours the store is open?

Nourhan: Currently it’s open on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 12pm – 8 pm, and other days by appointment only. It’s going to be used as a showroom other days for dancers who come in from out of town. Eventually I want to start a consignment section for people who have gently used costumes. Lots of dancers have costumes they’ve worn very few times and they can recycle them – there should be a venue for that and I hope to have that up and running before the Christmas season !

KH: Certainly – I know a lot of dancers who would make use of it!

Nourhan: Yes, and of course an old costume for one dancer is a new costume for someone else.

KH: Well, thank you Nourhan – best of luck to you with all your upcoming projects!

Nourhan: Thank you

For more details:

Sharifwear Retail Store

5-35 Ave

LIC NY 11101

Sharifwear Warehouse

38-01 23rd Ave Suite 405

Astoria NY 11105