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There’s something quietly radical about grey. While the rest of sportswear spent the 1980s screaming with neon colours, New Balance went the other way. Grey. The colour of concrete at dawn, of asphalt after rain, of cities before they wake up. Four decades later, Grey Days has become the brand’s most anticipated annual moment. It’s a month-long global campaign that has arrives in Dubai through one of the city’s most culturally loaded postcodes, with a ten-day neighbourhood takeover across Alserkal Avenue running from 2–10 May.
Here’s how to make the most of it.
What to Do
The skatepark at Gooder is your first stop. It’s the central hub of the Grey Days experience, and the space with the most going on. On weekends, OLLIE’S S.K.A.T.E brings high-energy skate performances at 1PM, escalating into a full competition at 6PM. If you’re there for the vibe more than the tricks, Ben Palace and Karak Sounds hold down the DJ sets from 8PM.
For something more hands-on, The Workshop DXB, one of Al Quoz’s best-kept secrets, a screen-printing studio known for artist residencies and custom hand-pulled prints, is hosting exclusive Grey Days sessions on May 2 and 9. You design it, you leave with it. Sessions run at 11AM and 3PM, 45 minutes each, and spots should be booked ahead at nbgreydays.com.
UrArtU Gallery, Gurgen Yeritsyan’s radical floral space, gets two weekend sessions on May 3 and 10, with workshops at 2PM and 4PM that sit at the unexpected intersection of movement, design, and nature. Also worth booking in advance at nbgreydays.com.
And if your idea of community is a dark room, loud music, and a bike that goes nowhere: CRANK’s boutique indoor cycling studio is running curated Shape classes across both weekends, with Grey Days tees for participants. Book through the Crank app.
Where to Go
On May 10 at 6AM, New Balance hosts its Grey Run, a relay built around the brand’s “Run Your Way” ethos, which is to say no to gatekeeping, no to pace requirement, show up as you are. The route starts from The Nightjar in Alserkal Avenue, with a post-run coffee collab to ease you back into the morning. Registration details and routing will be shared through New Balance Run Club channels.
What to Eat (and Drink)
Grey Days has quietly assembled a solid food and beverage programme across the neighbourhood. Ollie’s Pizza is serving limited-edition menu items out of Gooder, with DRVN Café also on-site at the hub for anything you need to hold while you browse the collection.
For coffee, Nightjar is the move. One of Dubai’s best artisanal roasters and a genuine fixture in the city’s creative scene, they’re running curated Grey Days moments and limited-edition menu items across the weekends, and anchoring the post-run refuel on May 10 for anyone doing the Grey Run.
What to Shop
The Grey Shop goes live on May 1 in New Balance stores and on NewBalance.com, a broad edit of grey styles including the FuelCell Rebel v5 and the 1080v15, alongside classic grey apparel. The footwear drops follow across the month: the ABZORB 2010 (AED 799) arrives on May 8, offering an innovative silhouette with a familiar feel. A week later, the ABZORB 2000 and ABZORB 5030 land together, both priced at AED 899, pulling from the brand’s 2000s running archive and pushing ABZORB technology into something more visually declarative. The month closes out on May 22 with the ABZORB 1890 at AED 549.
The full collection is available in New Balance stores, online, and at select retailers across the UAE, KSA, and Kuwait.
Grey Days runs 2–10 May across Alserkal Avenue, Dubai. For workshop registration: nbgreydays.com
