Yasmin Abdallah is an Australian fashion entrepreneur, better known professionally as Yasmin Sewell, and the founder of the fragrance brand Vyrao. She is also known for her former marriage to British actor Rufus Sewell, but her career extends far beyond that relationship.
After moving to London in the 1990s, she built a career in fashion buying, creative direction, and luxury retail. She worked with major fashion businesses, including Browns, Liberty, Style.com, and Farfetch, before launching Vyrao in 2021. Her story connects two different worlds: the fashion industry and the growing market for fragrances inspired by wellbeing.
Who Is Yasmin Abdallah?
Yasmin Abdallah, professionally known as Yasmin Sewell, is an Australian fashion consultant, former fashion buyer, creative director, and business founder.
Her original name and professional identity are confirmed in Vogue’s May 2013 profile. Fashion journalist Sarah Mower recalled knowing her when she arrived in London from Australia in 1996 under the name Yasmin Abdallah.
Since then, Sewell has developed a career built around discovering designers, shaping fashion collections, and helping retailers develop their creative identities.
Quick Facts About Yasmin Abdallah
| Detail | Verified information |
|---|---|
| Name | Yasmin Abdallah |
| Professional name | Yasmin Sewell |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Background | Grew up in Sydney in a Lebanese-Australian family |
| Profession | Fashion consultant, creative director, entrepreneur |
| Known business | Vyrao |
| Vyrao launch | 2021 |
| Former husband | Rufus Sewell |
| Marriage | Married in 1999; separated in 2000 |
These details are supported by profiles and reporting from Vogue, PerthNow, The Guardian, and Vyrao.
Her Early Life in Australia
Yasmin grew up in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. Her parents were Lebanese-Australian, and her mother worked as a hairdresser in Kingsford.
In an October 2017 interview with PerthNow, Sewell discussed her childhood and explained that she had not grown up in a household centered on fashion.
She left school at 16 and became a personal assistant to Australian property businessman John McGrath.
Her move to London in 1996 changed the direction of her career. Soon after arriving, she opened a fashion boutique called Yasmin Cho in Soho.
The shop stocked designers including Rick Owens and Miguel Adrover. These were distinctive choices at a time when both designers were still building their international reputations.
The business eventually closed, but the experience gave her a starting point in London’s fashion industry.
How Yasmin Abdallah Built Her Fashion Career
After running her own boutique, Sewell worked with established London fashion retailers.
One of her important positions was at Browns, where she worked as a fashion buyer. Buyers choose the clothing and designers that stores will sell, making their decisions important to both retailers and emerging fashion labels.
According to Vogue’s 2013 profile, Sewell bought Christopher Kane’s collection in 2006 while working at Browns.
She also helped encourage designer J.W. Anderson to expand into womenswear after discovering his menswear work while at Liberty in 2009.
These examples show the central role she played in finding new designers and bringing their work to customers.
Her career later included senior roles at other fashion companies. She served as fashion director at Style.com and vice president of style and creative at Farfetch.
She also worked as a consultant, helping fashion businesses develop their retail and creative strategies.
In 2025, Vogue Business included Sewell in its list of beauty industry innovators, recognizing her move from fashion into fragrance.
Yasmin Abdallah’s Marriage to Rufus Sewell
Yasmin Abdallah was previously married to British actor Rufus Sewell.
Rufus is known for his work in film and television, including Dark City, The Holiday, The Man in the High Castle, and The Diplomat.
The couple met in Australia while Rufus was working on the film Dark City, according to Sewell’s 2017 interview with PerthNow.
They married in 1999 but separated the following year, in 2000.
Their wedding was covered at the time by The Independent on April 4, 1999, which described a small register office ceremony.
A later December 2006 profile in The Guardian confirmed that the couple had separated in 2000.
Although the marriage ended, Yasmin continued using the Sewell surname in her professional life.
Her work in fashion developed independently of Rufus’s acting career, and her professional achievements became the main focus of later interviews and industry coverage.
From Fashion to Founding Vyrao
After years in luxury fashion, Sewell began developing a business that combined fragrance with her interest in personal wellbeing.
She started planning the company in 2019 and launched Vyrao in 2021.
Vyrao sells perfumes, scented candles, and incense. Its products are designed around feelings and emotional experiences rather than simply traditional fragrance categories.
For example, the brand has created fragrances associated with ideas such as confidence, self-love, and personal transformation.
In a September 2021 Vogue interview, Sewell discussed developing the original five fragrances with British perfumer Lyn Harris.
The collection included scents such as Witchy Woo, Georgette, and I Am Verdant.
Vyrao’s approach draws on aromatherapy, fragrance design, and Sewell’s personal interest in spiritual and energy-based practices. The company’s claims about energy and emotional effects should be understood as part of its wellness philosophy, rather than proof that its products provide medical treatment.
The business brought together her experience in branding, product development, and luxury retail with a different type of product.
What Is Yasmin Abdallah Doing Now?
Sewell remains professionally active through Vyrao.
In a February 2026 interview with Monocle, she discussed her move from fashion to fragrance and the decisions involved in building the company.
At the time, Monocle reported that Vyrao had developed 10 fragrances and completed three investment rounds.
Speaking about her career change, Sewell told the magazine:
I was always aware that I’d move into the wellness industry at some point.
Her comments explain that leaving full-time fashion roles did not mean losing interest in the industry. Instead, she wanted to use her experience to create a business of her own.
Vyrao has also attracted institutional investment. In September 2025, Vogue Business identified L Catterton, Estée Lauder Ventures, and Kinship Ventures among the investors backing the company.
This development gave Sewell’s fragrance business a place in the wider luxury beauty market.
Conclusion
Yasmin Abdallah and Yasmin Sewell are the same person. Although her brief marriage to Rufus Sewell is part of her biography, her professional story is centered on fashion and business.
From opening a London boutique in the 1990s to working with established luxury retailers and founding Vyrao in 2021, she has built a career across fashion, creative direction, and fragrance.
Her work with Vyrao remains the clearest picture of her professional direction in 2026.
