Southeast Asia's first 'Sneaker Con' attracts thousands of shoe fanatics

"We're all excited, that's why there's a lot of fanatics here," said Joel Layno, a Philippine national who has lived in Singapore for 15 years, and whose love for sneakers dates back over 20 years.

As he was seated in the 'trading pit' where hundreds of sneakers were being exchanged and resold, Layno added that the excitement for the event was heightened after the convention was cancelled in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic.

Aside from sneaker trading, dozens of footwear-related events were offered on Saturday, including the staple "40 for 40" giveaway raffle with attendees screaming and jumping in excitement for a chance to win their favourite pair.

According to organisers, around 15,000 attendees were expected to attend the two-day convention, with around 10% of ticket sales estimated to have come from overseas.

"It's amazing to see sneakerheads unite from around the region to gather for this event," Sneaker Con founder Alan Vinogradov told Reuters.

"Sneaker culture in Southeast Asia is emerging. There's a lot of new people that are coming up that are creating their products," he added.

The sneaker industry in Southeast Asia is expected to see almost 3% growth by 2024, with an estimated market volume of 31.77 million pairs by 2028, according to statistical analysis site 'Statista'.

"There's a lot of attention in Asia right now," said Singapore's leading sneaker artist, Mark Ong AKA Mister Sabotage, as he was launching his first collaboration sneaker with the world-renowned artist Jeff Staple.

The Sneaker Con, which calls itself the largest gathering of "sneakerheads" in the world, travels to over 20 cities around the world including New York, Los Angeles, London, Shanghai, Sydney and Toronto, attracting over 200,000 attendees and 4,000 vendors annually.

Reuters