Highly respected travel retail veteran Ziad Jabre has launched Meridian Partners, a business development and distribution company that helps brands establish and grow their presence across the channel.
Based in Dubai, the company supports brands at every stage of their travel retail development, from market entry and retailer engagement to securing listings and driving sell-through.
It combines a curated portfolio with senior-level expertise to build brand opportunities across the Middle East and Africa, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Americas.
Meridian Partners draws on Jabre’s strong track record in the industry, including eight years building Al Fakher’s global travel retail business and a previous role leading travel retail at Mars, alongside relationships with key retailers such as Avolta, Lagardère, Heinemann, DFS and Dubai Duty Free.
Meridian Partners Founder Ziad Jabre said: “Travel retail rewards experience and relationships. I created Meridian Partners to be the kind of partner brands need in this channel: one that opens the right doors, builds lasting retailer relationships and takes responsibility for results.”
The company launches with its first brand partnership, Karen Wazen Collection, founded in 2019 by Middle Eastern entrepreneur and global content creator Karen Wazen.
The Paris-designed eyewear and accessories brand is backed by a community of more than 16 million followers and an established retail presence across international markets and the Middle East, providing a platform for travel retail expansion.
Under its exclusive global travel retail partnership, Meridian Partners will drive Karen Wazen Collection’s development in the channel, focusing on retailer relationships, new listings and sales growth.
The partnership has extended Karen Wazen Collection’s duty-free distribution through new listings in Muscat and Bahrain, complementing its existing presence at Dubai Duty Free and Beirut Duty Free. Meridian Partners plans to build on this progress over the next 12 months, focusing on further growth opportunities across the Middle East and North Africa, Asia, the UK and France.
Jabre said, “Karen Wazen Collection is exactly the kind of brand that can resonate with today’s traveller: a distinctive point of view, a strong global community and a product that naturally lends itself to travel retail.
“Eyewear is a dynamic category, and there is a real opportunity to bring more founder-led brands into the channel.”
Karen Wazen added, “Sunglasses have always been the first thing I pack, and the thing that makes me feel at home wherever I land.
“I chose Ziad because he understands this channel from the inside and believes in what we’re building. Our community travels everywhere, and through Meridian Partners, we can connect with them at the start of their journey.” ✈
