At just 20 years old, Serena Abou Sefyan has become one of the fashion industry’s most exciting emerging names. Raised in Bourj Hammoud, Beirut, and proudly carrying both her Lebanese and Armenian heritage, the model recently made history by opening Fendi’s Spring/Summer 2026 show in Milan before signing an exclusive contract with the Italian luxury house. What followed was a defining moment not only for her career, but also for a new generation of young talents looking for representation on the global stage.
In conversation with YUNG, Abou Sefyan reflects on the surreal experience of opening one of fashion’s most prestigious runways, the challenges of navigating an industry built on resilience, and the responsibility she feels in representing her communities around the world.
Opening a Fendi show is an incredible opportunity for a model. What was going through your mind in the moments before you stepped onto that runway?
It all happened so fast that I barely had time to process it. Between airports, the casting, and the show itself, it didn’t really sink in until a few days later when I was at the Fendi headquarters in Milan and saw all the articles coming out. Seeing my face and name on pages I’d followed for years was a surreal moment.
Right before the show, I was incredibly nervous and genuinely wondered if I had stage fright. The second I stepped onto the runway, I got my answer. It felt completely natural, like I was exactly where I was supposed to be.
You described your reaction as pure shock and excitement. Has the significance of that moment fully sunk in yet, and what did it mean to you personally?
Honestly, I still ask myself that sometimes. Why me? Why was I lucky enough to be chosen not only to walk the show, but to open it and sign an exclusive?
What made it so meaningful was the timing. It happened during a period when I was feeling pretty low and questioning whether this was really the path I was meant to be on. In this industry, there’s only so much you can control, and I was doing everything I could on my end. The rest was out of my hands.
So when that opportunity came, I took it as a sign to keep going. It gave me a lot of confidence in myself and in the process.
As a Lebanese-Armenian woman, how important was it for you to represent both communities on one of fashion’s biggest stages?
Honestly, this question answers itself. Seeing the support from both communities afterward was enough to show me how much it meant. I received messages from complete strangers telling me to keep going and saying I was making them proud, which was really special.
If that comes with the responsibility of representing my Lebanese and Armenian roots, it’s one I’d carry with honour.
You mentioned never having an Armenian model to look up to while growing up. How does it feel knowing you may now become that reference point for a younger generation?
I still forget that I’m 20 until someone asks me how old I am and I have to stop and think about it for a second. So it’s a little surreal to think of myself as a reference point for anyone.
If I had someone to look up to as a point of reference, it would’ve made me relax a bit more knowing that someone had done it before. It would’ve made the dream feel less impossible. If a younger person can look at my journey and think, “If she did it, why can’t I?” then that’s really meaningful to me.
As easy as it is to be put in a box, it’s just as easy to get out of it.
Coming from Bourj Hammoud and growing up in Lebanon, did your upbringing shape the way you approach fashion, beauty, and self-expression today?
Growing up in Bourj Hammoud is very nostalgic for me. It’s filled with memories of my childhood and my grandparents’ house, where I spent most of my time while my parents were working. I never felt different. It always felt like there was no other world outside of the one I was in.
I think my upbringing made me very observant. When it comes to self-expression, I don’t like to overcomplicate it. I take it quite literally. Whatever I’m feeling is reflected in the way I dress or carry myself. I don’t really fit into a single category, and I don’t think I need to.
You have spoken openly about how modelling was not always understood within the Lebanese-Armenian community. What were some of the biggest misconceptions you encountered, and how did you overcome them?
The reactions were usually a snarky smirk, or comments like, “Okay, but what about when it’s over?” or “What are you going to do when this fails?”
I understand those remarks often come from a place of concern for stability, but at the same time, no one, including them or myself, can really predict the future. It’s not definite that it will end. It will end when it’s meant to, and right now that doesn’t feel like the case at all.
I think there’s also this misconception that anything creative, whether it’s studying English literature, art, or modelling, is just a side hobby rather than something that can be a full-time career.
I usually handled it with a smile and a simple “let’s see,” and left it at that. I’ve never really been affected by social pressure in that way.
At just 20 years old, you’ve already worked across Paris, London, Milan, Madrid, and Barcelona. Which city has challenged you the most creatively and professionally?
Paris is my favourite city to this day, which makes it ironic that it’s also the one that challenged me the most. It was the first city I ever travelled to for modelling, and I went alone. Navigating life with other models and, to be honest, strangers at the time, was a level of independence I hadn’t really experienced before. It was scary, but we made it through.
Paris has very high standards. It can be hard to hold onto your confidence and discipline when you feel like, no matter how much you try, you’ll never be like “them.” Those thoughts creep in when you’re already vulnerable, but part of the job is knowing yourself well enough to snap out of it.
What have the past two years taught you about resilience, especially in an industry that is often defined by rejection and uncertainty?
At the beginning, I actually had a healthier mindset than I did in the middle of it all. I understood that rejection had nothing to do with me personally. It was just about not being the direction a brand needed at that time. But I’ve faced so many rejections I’ve honestly lost count. Each one is bound to affect your morale at some point, and I would be lying if I said it didn’t make me second-guess myself like any normal person would. Still, somehow I always went back and gave even more than I did the first time. Having a strong support system is what really helped me get through it.
Fendi has now signed you as an exclusive model. What was your experience like working with the house, and what makes the brand special from a model’s perspective?
In this job, you usually move from set to set and rarely see the same people twice. But with Fendi, it felt different. The team became like a family. I wasn’t just jumping between jobs. I could walk onto set, greet everyone, and actually know them, ask about their lives, and have that connection be mutual. Even outside of work, a lot of the team reached out when Lebanon wasn’t in a safe situation just to make sure my family and I were okay. That kind of care stays with you.
Looking back at the younger Serena who may have felt like the “troublemaker” compared to her academically driven sister, what would you tell her today?
I wouldn’t tell her anything, because she’s the one who got us to where we are now and she clearly knew what she was doing.
I never felt like I was less than my sister just because I wasn’t as academically strong as she was. We always knew we were good at completely different things, and my parents never made it into something negative. I remember being happy and celebrating even if I just passed with half a grade, while for her a 96 would raise the question of why it wasn’t 100. She has always had that perfectionist mindset, and she delivers on it. And I do too, just in a different way.
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