Malika Louback-Mohamed is a Djiboutian-French fashion model and engineer. She is the first Djiboutian woman to feature on the cover of ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

.''

Family and engineering education

Malika Louback comes from

Djibouti Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...

. She has two sisters. Her first name means "queen" in

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

, and her surname means "lioness", in Afar language, one of the languages of Djibouti. Her mother is Moumina Houmed Hassan, who has been Djibouti Minister for Women and the Family since 2016, after a career in

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...

s and the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

. Her father works as an engineer. Following in her father's footsteps, Louback has three college degrees: a Diplôme universitaire de technologie in

industrial Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominate ...

and maintenance engineering, a bachelor’s degree in

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

and another degree in materials science engineering. She came to

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

in 2013, and spent six years there for her studies. She then stayed to model in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. Her two sisters also live in France.

Modeling career

Louback had always wanted to be a fashion model as well as an engineer, "to have several strings to my bow", she says, and believes that her engineering experience helps her be more attentive to detail as a model. She takes her fashion inspiration from her mother, grandmother, and other Djiboutian women. She reached out to

IMG Models IMG Models is an international modeling agency headquartered in New York City and with additional offices in London, Los Angeles, Milan, Paris, and Sydney. It is a subsidiary of the talent management company International Management Group. The com ...

via their website as soon as she had completed her third degree. She got an immediate call-back, and signed with them in September 2019. In the spring/summer 2020 season Louback walked in shows for

Jil Sander Heidemarie Jiline "Jil" Sander (; b. 27 November 1943) is a German minimalist fashion designer and the founder of the Jil Sander fashion house. Early life and education Heidemarie Jiline Sander was born in Wesselburen, Nazi Germany on 27 Nov ...

in Milan, Yves Saint Laurent in Paris, Chanel and

Hermès Hermès International S.A., or simply Hermès ( , ), is a French luxury design house established in 1837. It specializes in leather goods, lifestyle accessories, home furnishings, perfumery, jewelry, watches and ready-to-wear. Its logo, since ...

. Her first magazine cover was ''

'' Paris in September 2020; she was the first Djiboutian woman on that cover. Louback spent the 2020 French pandemic lockdown in a small Paris apartment with roommates. She did the occasional

FaceTime FaceTime is a proprietary videotelephony product developed by Apple Inc. FaceTime is available on supported iOS mobile devices running iOS 4 and later and Mac computers that run and later. FaceTime supports any iOS device with a forward-faci ...

modeling shoot. In 2021, Louback became "the face" of fashion house

Loro Piana Loro Piana is an Italian company specialized in clothing and textile products. It is considered the largest cashmere manufacturer and the world's leading artisan company processing luxury fibers.Miles Socha and Luisa Zargani (28 October 2021)Loro ...

. Since 2022, she has been one of the top 50 models of Models.com.

Publications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Louback, Malika Living people IMG Models models Djiboutian expatriates in France Models from Paris Djiboutian female models Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century women engineers Djiboutian engineers Afar people