Where sneaker lovers bare their souls

DUBAI // Benjamin Galang loves basketball, and basketball sneakers in particular.

The 35-year-old father of one from the Philipppines has been collecting sports shoes for more than half of his life. And he has no intention of stopping anytime soon.

"I have been collecting sneakers since I was in high school, starting with my first pair of Nike Air Jordans," said the merchant relations officer.

"I love basketball, and ever since I got my first sneakers I've bought the latest ones every year before the season starts," he said.

Mr Galang was among the crowds of sneaker enthusiasts who made their way to Al Quoz for Sole DXB, an event dedicated to sneakers, fashion and urban culture.

Now in its second year, it brings together enthusiasts and industry insiders representing well-known sport brands such as Nike, Puma, Adidas, Fred Perry, DC Shoes and Quiksilver, all keen to show their latest creations to eager fans.

"I have been here six years and I've seen a real growth in the number of people who collect and customise sneakers, especially in the last year," said Mr Galang.

The event also featured a host of local graffiti artists, DJs and musicians.

The rap group Run-DMC's preference for Adidas Superstar shoes in the 1980s and US basketball star Michael Jordan's endorsement of Nike, which resulted in the popular Nike Air Jordan series, are credited with helping to shape people's fascination with sneakers as more than just sports shoes.

"Sneaker culture is a way of reflecting your personality through what you wear," said Karim Al Sawi, 25, a disc jockey who performs under the name DJ Brooklyn and likes to design snealers.

"There are many people in the UAE who share a love of sneakers and the number is growing. But what is hindering them is a lack of facilities like skate parks and bike ramps so they can do what they love," he said.

One of Sole DXB's three founders, Hussain Moloobhoy, 32, from India, said his love of sneakers inspired him to take a year-long break from his advertising career to study design in Italy and the UK.

"I have a big passion for sneakers. I spent a year studying design between London and Milan - it is an art on its own," he said,

The first step towards Sole DXB came when Mr Moloobhoy and co-founder Kris Balerite were both invited to design shoes at the Puma Creative factory in 2010.

"We were working close to each other and admired each other's work - we threw a joke about creating a sneaker gentleman's club," said Mr Balerite, 28, who is from the Philippines.

"We decided to set up a Facebook page about sneakers and sneaker design in Dubai, and then we were immediately approached by Josh Cox [Sole DXB's third co-founder]."

A few cups of coffee later, Sole DXB was born.

Rather than just copy what is coming out of America, the event highlights the UAE's own sense of style. "The UAE has its own urban culture," said Mr Balerite. "It's growing, but it's still fresh."

Many sneaker collectors display unflinching brand loyalty, and customise their shoes to their own styles and looks. Some even keep new pairs in their shoe boxes - to be admired but never worn.

"The brands think they know what the consumer wants, but they don't. That's why we set up this forum, as a platform to bring all sides together - brands and fans," said Mr Balerite.

"There is such a huge pool of artists and musicians who have helped grow the idea of a culture based around a shared love of sneaker shoes."

amustafa@thenational.ae

The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full

1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion

The five new places of worship

Church of South Indian Parish

St Andrew's Church Mussaffah branch

St Andrew's Church Al Ain branch

St John's Baptist Church, Ruwais

Church of the Virgin Mary and St Paul the Apostle, Ruwais

COMPANY PROFILE

Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar

Based: Dubai, UAE

Founded: 2014

Number of employees: 36

Sector: Logistics

Raised: $2.5 million

Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE

Arrogate's winning run

1. Maiden Special Weight, Santa Anita Park, June 5, 2016

2. Allowance Optional Claiming, Santa Anita Park, June 24, 2016

3. Allowance Optional Claiming, Del Mar, August 4, 2016

4. Travers Stakes, Saratoga, August 27, 2016

5. Breeders' Cup Classic, Santa Anita Park, November 5, 2016

6. Pegasus World Cup, Gulfstream Park, January 28, 2017

7. Dubai World Cup, Meydan Racecourse, March 25, 2017

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The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

NO OTHER LAND

Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

Rating: 3.5/5

The%20Color%20Purple

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How to wear a kandura

Dos

Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester

Don’ts

Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying

No more lice

Defining head lice

Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.

Identifying lice

Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.

Treating lice at home

Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.

Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
not be younger than 25 years old
not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially

In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010

Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year

Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”

Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013

The bio

Favourite book: Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer

Favourite quote: “The world makes way for the man who knows where he is going.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist

Favourite Authors: Arab poet Abu At-Tayyib Al-Mutanabbi

Favourite Emirati food: Luqaimat, a deep-fried dough soaked in date syrup

Hobbies: Reading and drawing

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

COMPANY%20PROFILE

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