Aïshti is an upmarket Lebanese department store chain founded in 1989. The company operates both Aïshti and Aïzone brands across Lebanon and Jordan. In 2016 the company recorded an annual revenue of $250 million.[3]
History
Aïshti was founded in 1989 by Tony Salamé.[4] It began as a small store selling Italian jeans and clothing in Jal el Dib.[2][3]
In September 2020 the new Aïshti store designed by Zaha Hadid under construction in Beirut Souks caught on fire.[5][6]
Stores
Aïshti also operates Aïshti Minis a children's clothing store in Beirut (Achrafieh and Downton) and Antelias (By The Sea).[7]
Operating
Amman, Jordan – Opened in 2023 at the TAJ Lifestyle Center.[8]
The Aïshti Foundation is a 350,000-square-foot mixed art gallery and retail space located north of Beirut in Jal el Dib, Lebanon. The Aishti Foundation was constructed on behalf of Aishti CEO Tony Salamé, and designed by architect David Adjaye and interiors by Christian Lahoude Studio.[16][17] It opened in 2015 and houses over 2,000 works from Tony and Elham Salamé's personal collection.[3] Construction took three years to complete and the cost of construction is estimated to be over $100 million.[18][19][20][21]
The inaugural exhibition, entitled “New Skin,” was curated by Massimiliano Gioni and features work from notable artists such as Alice Channer, Sterling Ruby and Danh Voh, as well as figures from the Arte Povera movement such as Giuseppe Penone.[3]
In 2009 through the Tony Salamé Group,[23] L'Officiel Levant was launched as the local edition of L'Officiel for Lebanon and Syria, it was published in French.[24] It was distributed in bookstores, luxury hotels and Aïshti stores.[24] The magazines editor-in-chief from 2009 to 2019 was Fifi Abou Dib (who previously worked for L'Orient-Le Jour).[25] In 2019 the magazine ceased publication after ten years.
They also operated A Magazine an English-language publication about fashion which closed in 2019 and Gossip which ceased publication in 2012.[26][11]
Tony Salamé is a Lebanese-Italian businessman and art collector,[16] as well as the founder, CEO and chairman of Aishti.[11] In 1995, he built Aishti into Lebanon's foremost luxury department store with a flagship store in Beirut's Downtown Souks.
Art collection
Salamé owns around 2,500 works by over 150 artists. He works closely with New York art dealer Jeffrey Deitch, and began buying art in 2003, first acquiring Arte Povera works by Penone, Lucio Fontana and others.
According to Gioni, the associate director and director of exhibitions at the New Museum in New York, there has been “a sudden acceleration of the [Salamé] collection in the past ten years."[28] The main focus of his collection is 21st century art.[19]
Italian Order of Merit
In March 2015 Salamé was awarded the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, Italy's highest honor, by the Italian Embassy in Beirut at an event attended by diplomats, business partners and family.[29]
Money laundering accusations
Salamé has been suspected of money laundering by Lebanese media.[11] He has denied these claims.[3]
Personal life
He is married to Elham Salamé; they have four children: Tasha, Giorgio, Sandro and Mateo. He speaks fluent French, English, Arabic and Italian.[16]
