Karen Wazen

Karen Wazen is a Lebanese-British fashion entrepreneur and digital influencer based in Dubai. She began her digital career through a blog Karen’s Choice in 2016 and has now gained over 4.2 million Instagram followers. In December 2018, Wazen launched a namesake eyewear collection and was ranked in Forbes’ Women Behind Middle Eastern Brands List consecutively in 2019 and 2020.
== Career ==
Karen Wazen launched her blog Karen's Choice in 2016 as a personal space to share her journey in motherhood, and a glimpse into her passion for traveling, beauty, home décor and style. In the same year, she had already amassed an Instagram community of more than 113,000 followers where she shared unfiltered images and heartwarming videos with her husband, son and twin daughters.
As Karen's clout in the social media sphere grew, regional counterparts of international fashion titles, as well as beauty and fashion brands started to take notice. Karen recounts some of her first collaborations with brands like Dior Beauty, Cartier and Breitling, and for whom she has starred in digital and editorial campaigns. She has also been on the cover of magazines including Harper's Bazaar Arabia, L'Officiel Levant, ELLE Arabia and Grazia Morocco.
Karen has graced red carpet events, including the prestigious Cannes Film Festival and is a front-row regular at New York and Paris Fashion Weeks including shows for luxury and haute couture houses like Tory Burch, Dior, Elie Saab and Ralph & Russo.
In December 2018, Karen Wazen officially launched her namesake brand Karen Wazen Eyewear, exclusively revealed by Vogue Arabia. Karen developed the collection as a direct reflection of her own style, fashion philosophy, and personal taste. By November 2019, Karen Wazen Eyewear debuted with its first international e-retailer, Farfetch and continues to expand globally through department stores and e-commerce sites including Moda Operandi, Shopbop, Browns, Harvey Nichols in Kuwait and Level in Dubai.
== Recognition ==
In April 2019, Karen Wazen was invited as a speaker at Harvard University's Arab Conference entitled (Re)Imagining Home.
At Cosmopolitan Middle East's 2019 Influencer Awards, she was recognised as Entrepreneur Of The Year.
By August 2019, Karen Wazen was recognised for her label in Forbes' 2019 list of Women Behind Middle Eastern Brands.
In October 2019, she was awarded Achieving Women in Digital Influence at Entrepreneur Middle East's annual Achieving Women Awards.
== Philanthropy ==
Karen Wazen has long been supporting charitable causes, including the refugee relief efforts of The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
== Personal Life ==
Born on April 10, 1987, Lebanese-British Karen Wazen now lives in Dubai with her family. She married Elias Bakhazi in 2012, and is a mother of three to Georgie and twin daughter, Karlie and Kay.
Karen is among a family of talented Lebanese entrepreneurs. Her mother runs an interior design company, while her twin sisters Andrea is the founder and designer of namesake shoe label Andrea Wazen, and Jessica is a professional chef who owns a catering company and has worked with Yannick Alleno, Alain Ducasse and Gordon Ramsay.
 
== References ==
== External Links ==
* Karen Wazen Eyewear
* Karen Wazen's Instagram
* Karen Wazen's YouTube
Category:British Fashion Influencers
Category: British Social Media Influencers
Category: British Fashion Entrepreneurs