The Middle East beauty market is a $47 billion opportunity, a 17-country-strong landscape of rich culture and history, yet when it has come to its representation in beauty outside of its own borders, imagery is often one-sided: kajal-lined eyes, long, long, thick hair, strongly defined brows.Cosmetics brand Asteri is looking to celebrate and uplift the beauty of the Saudi Arabia region in all its modern glory. Commenting on the beauty landscape of the region, Asteri founder Sara Al Rashed notes: “On a local level it’s very small, we have every international brand you can imagine, but we don’t have a local beauty brand scene. We have a lot of local salons, spas, and services but very minimal products. Production locally is limited to perfumes and we have some body care brands arising but not makeup. I hope that the scene will get bigger [in the future].” The company is certainly helping to fortify that cosmetic cosmos, not only because of the “sisters under the stars” motto informing it.Al Rashed grew up with the transformative power of beauty alongside her other two siblings, highlighting one of their weddings at six years old as a memorable beauty moment. “My idea of a modern tribe or sisterhood is like looking at the stars—if you get closer to them, they all look different, but from a distance, they become brighter as a collective,” she stated upon the launch of the brand. That sisterhood is even reflected in products like the HERizon Eye Liner or the Legacy Lipstick, the shades of which are all named after important women in the founder’s life.