Pairup-Walk in My Shoes: Embracing Diversity Through Design

Abdelrahman Galal's Award-Winning Design Encourages Cultural Understanding

Galal's design inspiration stems from the increasing diversity in our world. He believes that design is a visual language that communicates with the world, attracting equivalent energy. With this in mind, he created Pairup-Walk in My Shoes, a pair of shoes designed to be worn mismatched as a symbol of accepting differences. Each half of the pair tells different stories from different countries, making our culturally diverse world easier to embrace.

What sets this design apart is its unique properties. Each half has a different pattern design that describes its country, and each half has a distinctive smell associated with its country. This is the first shoe in the industry where each half is sold separately, allowing customers to mix and match halves from different countries. This not only creates a unique product but also a unique experience for the customer.

The shoes are made from Polyester and Eva Foam, adhering to standard shoe dimensions. The packaging is designed to fit each half separately, reflecting the concept of selling each half alone. The design process took around five months, with the project being a self-initiative study based in Hamburg, Germany.

Galal faced several challenges during the design process. The main challenge was how to use all sneaker aspects (Design, Texture, Smell, Shoe box) to represent a culture and tell different stories yet make a cool product and experience that people would love to buy. He overcame this by using Adidas as a host brand, one of the most loved shoe brands among millennials.

In conclusion, Pairup-Walk in My Shoes is a testament to the power of design in promoting cultural understanding and diversity. It is a unique product that not only offers a unique experience for the customer but also encourages them to embrace diversity. As Galal puts it, "Everyday our world is increasingly diverse. How can we be familiar about others differences and express our openness of accepting our culturally diverse world? PairUp-Walk in my shoes is a project made to encourage people embrace diversity and cultural differences like never before."