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Sole DXB returns this weekend from December 12th to 14th at Dubai Design District (d3).
What started as a sneaker summit back in 2011 has morphed into something much bigger. A three-day pilgrimage for everyone who cares about what they’re putting on their bodies. It’s Dubai’s answer to the culture clash where streetwear meets high fashion, where international brands rub shoulders with regional talent.
The crowds get bigger every year, and the fits get bolder. In a way, it’s become a theme-less Met Gala for Dubai’s style-obsessed. If you want fashion inspo, just look around at the crowd itself, mixed with the curated chaos of brands dropping exclusive pieces you won’t find anywhere else.
It’s a part trade show, part music festival, part open-air lookbook. And if you’re wondering what to expect from the brands setting up shop this year, we’ve got you covered.
This is your guide to the brands that will be there:
28NATELIER
28NATELIER arrives at Sole DXB 2025 with a collection rooted in identity, craft, and quiet defiance. Based in the UAE and built on the hands of an in-house team that treats tailoring like a second language, the label has carved out its own lane where structure meets softness, and sustainability isn’t an add-on, but the blueprint. Every piece is cut, stitched, and finished in their Abu Dhabi atelier, reinforcing a commitment to local production, limited-quantity drops, and fabric waste that’s repurposed rather than forgotten. It’s contemporary womenswear with intention: slow, sharp, and deeply personal.
For Sole this year, they’re unveiling an exclusive Bilad Al-Sham inspired capsule, created specifically for the festival. It’s a homage to heritage, to continuity, to the people behind every seam. Sewing has always been part of our region’s memory long before it became an industry, and the collection pulls from that lineage. Expect authentic textiles sourced from across the Levant, reimagined through 28NATELIER’s lens and brought to life by a team whose craft is shaped by generations of passed-down skill. It’s fashion as storytelling, culture as construction, and a reminder that some things are timeless because they’re made with care. See you at Sole.
SN3
Rooted between Khartoum and Riyadh, the studio founded by friends Ahmed Shareef, Abdallah Abbas, and Mahdi Jali has grown into a multidisciplinary force using streetwear, film, architecture, and design to articulate Sudanese identity on its own terms. What began as three students frustrated by the absence of authentic Sudanese representation has evolved into a creative movement committed to telling Sudanese stories through Sudanese hands. Each shirt carries a story sewed with the hope of return and love that resonates deeply across Sudan’s diaspora.
SN3’s practice is a reminder that art, especially in moments of crisis, serves as both an archive and a lifeline. More than a garment, the project acts as a quiet form of resistance and remembrance, with all proceeds directed to organisations supporting civilians affected by the ongoing war.
At Sole DXB 2025, they’ll unveil their Winter ’25 collection, created exclusively for the festival.
NO BORDERS SHOP
No Borders Shop is coming to Dubai with a curated showcase of sustainable fashion, art, and jewellery that celebrates heritage and creativity from around the world. Founded in 2018 by stylist Kanika Karvinkop in Mumbai’s historic Khotachiwadi neighbourhood, the platform began as a vintage and concept store, championing underground art, slow fashion, and global crafts.
Now a vibrant online marketplace, No Borders connects designers from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and South America with conscious buyers. At Sole DXB, visitors can explore handwoven textiles, embroidered art, zines, limited-edition jewellery, and more — all made with ethical, slow-fashion practices. This is your chance to shop thoughtfully, discover new talent, and support meaningful causes.
Precious Trust
Founded in 2018 by Algerian designer Wathek Allal, Precious Trust has grown into one of the UAE’s most distinctive independent labels, merging North African street culture with Dubai’s contemporary edge. Known for experimental graphics, hand-dyed pieces, and clean silhouettes, the brand treats every collection as a new chapter in developing their ongoing, deeply personal narrative. The label’s name reflects this intimacy: Wathek translates to Trust, and Precious is his nickname for the people closest to him.
Born in Syria to Algerian parents, Allal moved to Dubai at 15 after the war broke out. It’s where his journey began first with a floral tracksuit he made because he “could never find anything like it here,” and soon after with a pop-up that sold out entirely. Much of Precious Trust is rooted in Allal’s reconnection with his heritage. “I want to show youth, nature, family, love stories and everything all around. I love the North African tacky and romantic stuff,” he says. “I want to be able to look at any piece and remember what it was about.”
This year at Sole DXB 2025, Precious Trust joins forces with Midnight Sport, bringing their shared love for youth culture, football, and community into a dedicated, football-themed space. Complete with a pop-up barbershop and exclusive limited pieces featuring experimental cuts, the collaboration feels like a natural extension of Allal’s world: intimate, expressive, and built for the people. Make sure to check it out.
Finchitua
Finchitua, the label named after the Ethiopian word finchit, “the girl with a gap between her teeth.” Blend’s traditional Ethiopian textiles with contemporary silhouettes, heavily shaped by the many cultural influences that have defined Feiruza Mudessir’s craft. “You’ll find not only Ethiopian flavours but also design elements from India and Dubai,” she teases. From woven Habesha fabrics reimagined into modern dresses to bold graphic detailing and asymmetrical cuts, Feiruza’s work leads with her loud experimental brilliance while holding close the rhythms, colours, and stories of her heritage.
This weekend, she returns to Sole DXB with NeoNomad Athleisure, where tribal roots meet the city. Expect signature artworks across hoodies, sweatpants, tees, and shorts, alongside one-off pieces created exclusively for the festival. The brand also debuts its Afro-Futuristic Denim Collection, bringing Finchitua’s perspective on heritage, movement, and diasporic identity into a new terrain, making Sole DXB 2025 its boldest showcase yet!
Atlal from Galbi
Atlal from Galbi arrives at Sole DXB 2025, founded in 2020 by designer Lilia Yasmin, the brand is built on a simple but resonant ethos: Designed by the Roots. Drawing from her experience at Louis Vuitton and Balenciaga, Yasmin merges Algerian heritage with a clean, contemporary design language that feels both intimate and universal. This balance between tradition and modernity defines Atlal from Galbi. Yasmin reinterprets elements like embroidery, tailoring, and heritage fabrics through minimal silhouettes and contemporary cuts. Handmade craftsmanship remains central, with artisans bringing generations of technique to every stitch.
At Sole DXB 2025, Atlal from Galbi channels this storytelling into a showcase that invites audiences to step into an Algeria remembered, reimagined, and worn close to the heart.
Qasimi
London-based QASIMI brings its signature mix of sophistication and Emirati heritage to Sole DXB 2025. Ahead of its Spring/Summer 2026 launch, the label will offer an exclusive first glimpse of its upcoming collection, marking ten years of Khalid Al Qasimi’s legacy and creative vision carried forward by Sheikha Hoor Al Qasimi.
For this season, the collection explores memory, transformation, and cultural hybridity, bridging identities, geographies, and time. In collaboration with Lebanese artist Dala Nasser, QASIMI translates these themes into layered silhouettes, raw textures, and distressed finishes that echo impermanence. The activation also features final-year Interior Design students from the University of Sharjah, furthering QASIMI’s commitment to fostering regional creative talent.
Visitors to Sole DXB will experience the collection through an immersive installation that blends clothing, art, and spatial storytelling, offering a tactile and visual interpretation of the brand’s narrative.
Absent Findings
Dubai-based label Absent Findings, founded by Shivin Singh with roots in Florence and South Asian heritage, brings its signature blend of minimalist elegance and daring experimentation to Sole DXB 2025. Absent Findings draws inspiration from art, culture, and unexpected forms, producing deconstructed shapes, bold asymmetry, and pieces that encourage self-expression. At its core, the brand celebrates contrast from themes of restraint and rebellion, absence and presence. Crafting fashion that is both thoughtful and avant-garde such as their Gallery Bag previously featured in ICON MENA. Crafted from supple Tuscan leather and deadstock microfiber suede, it combined sari-inspired stitchwork, seashell geometry, and the bold lines of Le Corbusier’s Palace of Assembly.
Find Absent Findings collection ranging from the brand’s signature handbags, garments that play with clean lines, monochromatic palettes, and meticulously tailored silhouettes, fully produced in the UAE at Sole this weekend.
Congo clothing Company
Congo Clothing Company (CCC) brings a fresh fusion of Congolese heritage and contemporary style to Sole DXB 2025. Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Miami, with production in Colombia, CCC bridges Africa and the West through thoughtful design and measurable social impact. The brand’s logo — zigzag patterns inspired by 17th-century Kuba textiles and straight lines representing resilience reflects its commitment to heritage, purpose, and cross-cultural dialogue. Through its innovative C3 framework, developed with support from MIT’s innovation ecosystem, CCC transforms design into a force for good.
Festival-goers can experience the brand’s creative process firsthand in a live studio, where artisans craft designs in real time. CCC will also host conversations with African designers and social entrepreneurs, highlighting ethical fashion, cultural preservation, and the role of design in driving social change.
Badibanga
Making their Sole DXB debut, Badibanga is a design-led fashion label where clothing transforms into a language of identity, memory, while contemporarily fresh. Co-founded by Congolese-born, Belgian-raised Creative Director Oscar Badibanga and British-Iranian Chief Brand Officer Gilda Gilantash Badibanga, the brand merges diverse cultural influences with timeless design. Its collections draw inspiration from heritage, architecture, and craft, reimagining the modern uniform as garments that are both utilitarian and refined, minimal yet deeply personal. Each batch drop acts as a building block in an evolving wardrobe, designed to be layered, worn, and reinterpreted by its wearer. More than just fashion, Badibanga fosters community and storytelling, providing a space where roots and innovation intersect, and every detail carries meaning.
At Sole this weekend, Badibanga presents The Common Room, a dedicated space for visitors to pause, explore, and connect with the brand. Festival-goers can meet the team, discover daily drops, exclusive colorways, and pieces from Batch 1: My Grandfather Was a Tailor and Batch 2: Project O: A Love Letter to Amerikamura.
Swey Collective
This list would be incomplete without a mention of the Dubai-born SWEY Collective. It’s hard to miss their incredible Main Character Energy campaign. Known for their bold acetate frames and cinematic storytelling, SWEY frames the city’s creative community in a cult-like following. Built around the idea that everyone is the protagonist of their own story, the label fuses fashion, film, and street culture to craft eyewear that feels both iconic and expressive. Each piece commands attention through chrome elements, rich acetate tones, and the ever unapologetically confident attitude that has made their pop up at Al Serkal Avenue such a success. Presenting titanium sunglasses, sterling silver jewelry, and sculptural statement pieces celebrated by an incredible campaign featuring our very own homegrown icons and cultural pioneers from Rahat Kunakunova, Thirdy Ravena and others.
