Waleed conceived Maison NAUM in 2004 as a vehicle to explore future technologies within the context of luxury fashion.  

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NAUM's primary objective was to forge its reputation as an energetic and dominant leader in the use of high technology fabric, design and production methods and integrate those ideas with the classical couture principles of craftsmanship.  

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The first  collection for Fall 2005 received front page recognition in WWD, the fashion industry's most widely read daily. 

 

NAUM's debut runway collection for Spring 2006 won rave reviews from Cathy Horyn, the chief fashion critic of the New York Times, along with accolades from influential digital sites like Vogue.com and Suzy Menkes from the International Herald Tribune.  Style.com put NAUM on their coveted 'Ones To Watch' list. 

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NAUM has been featured in profile articles and editorials in international publications such as W, Elle, Vogue Italia, Flaunt, In Style, O, Gotham, Oyster, the New York Times Magazine, Corriera della Serra, and The Financial Times.

   

Acclaimed as one of the revolutionary new voices in American fashion, in 2007 NAUM won the prestigious Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Prize, and was on track to being a finalist for CFDA Best New Designer list.