Malaysia’s sneaker scene has come a long way since Bryan Chin first brought sneakerheads together in 2015. What began as a gathering for friends has evolved into SneakerLAH, one of the country’s best-known sneaker and streetwear events, and, more recently, LahLahLand, a broader celebration of youth culture that brings fashion, food, collectibles, running and trading cards under one roof.
The evolution feels particularly relevant today. For a generation that might be spending Mondays playing pickleball, Tuesdays at a running club and the weekends hunting for rare Pokémon and One Piece cards, culture rarely exists in a single lane. Chin recognises this shift and decides that the platform he has spent years building should reflect the way young Malaysians actually live. The result is LahLahLand, which made its debut in 2025 and returned to the Mines International Exhibition and Convention Centre (MIECC) on 10 and 11 October 2026 with an expanded programme.
This year’s festival has brought together the familiar foundations of sneakers and streetwear with newer interests, including CardsLAH, WatchesLAH, thrift culture, esports and MakanLAH. The latter speaks to an especially Malaysian instinct: the idea that a good gathering is rarely complete without something to eat. Yet, beneath the expanded line-up is a familiar principle for Chin, who believes that a community cannot be built on commerce alone. People need a reason to belong, and brands need to contribute something meaningful beyond the products they sell.
One of the weekend’s most anticipated releases has to be the ASICS GEL-KAYANO 20 “ICE KACANG”, the fifth collaboration between ASICS Sportstyle Malaysia and SneakerLAH. Priced at RM899, the limited-edition sneaker translates the colours and ingredients of a beloved Malaysian dessert into a technically detailed design. Following previous tributes to nasi lemak, the Kuala Lumpur Twin Towers, teh tarik and MAMEE Monster, the latest drop continues Chin’s distinctly local approach to sneaker storytelling. We sat down with the founder to discuss the evolution of LahLahLand, the people behind its success and why the next chapter of Malaysian street culture might be even more exciting than the last.
What inspired you to build LahLahLand into something much bigger than where you started?
Bryan Chin (BC): For the longest time, SneakerLAH was known for sneaker culture. When we started in 2015, there wasn’t really anything like it here. Over the years, friends and people in the community kept encouraging me to do something about it, so we started with a small event, and it just blew up in the first year.
We had about 17,000 visitors that first year, and the numbers grew to 20,000 the following year. Our highest recorded attendance eventually came close to 35,000. Last year, when we moved to a new location and introduced a new name, it was a risk we took. We ended up welcoming close to 30,000 people.
Previously, we were very focused on one culture, but young people today are into so many different things. They could be doing pickleball, joining a running club, hitting the gym or doing Hyrox, and then having a DJ gig – all within a week. Social media has made it much easier to explore new interests. Within two weeks of watching YouTube videos or listening to podcasts, you can become pretty knowledgeable about a subject.
I spoke to the team about creating an event that reflects what young people are today, and that’s how LahLahLand was born. Honestly, SneakerLAH was already heading in that direction. Even though the name was about sneakers, there were always so many other things happening at the event. It was a natural transition.
Was LahLahLand part of your 10-year plan when you first started SneakerLAH?
BC: Not at all. The first SneakerLAH was just a small sneaker-meet event. I was a guy who simply wanted to hang out with his friends. It wasn’t supposed to become this huge thing.
Back in 2015, we were expecting around 1,000 people. I knew a few celebrity friends who came and posted about the event, and suddenly, it blew up. We thought it was just beginner’s luck because it was our first time and we were holding it in a mall. The following year, we moved to Kenanga Wholesale City, and the numbers grew even bigger. That’s when we realised we had to take this seriously.
What sets LahLahLand apart from other events in the region?
BC: Although there are quite a few events around, I think each of us has a very different lane. We’re still very much rooted in sneakers, fashion and streetwear, but we’re now expanding into different lifestyles.
There are other events focused on motorsports, thrifting and many other interests. I don’t see any other events that are directly similar to ours, but I think other organisers have also found their own niches and areas of focus along the way.
Would you consider bringing LahLahLand to other markets beyond Malaysia?
BC: I’ve been approached by quite a few regional partners about taking this beyond Malaysia. But I feel strongly about the community here. I was born and grew up here, and there’s something meaningful about building something for the people and culture you know.
For now, I want to continue growing what we have here. There’s still so much potential to explore locally, and I don’t think we’ve exhausted what LahLahLand can become yet.
As a community leader yourself in the realms of streetwear and the sneaker-verse, who or what would you credit for LahLahLand’s success?
BC:: I think it’s still very much rooted in sneakers and streetwear. You can see the people lining up overnight for these brands. Even with an RM899 Ice Kacang sneaker, people are still lining up. We can say that sneaker culture isn’t dead.
Ultimately, it’s about the people and the story you tell. Over the years, sneakers and streetwear have become a cash grab for some corporations. But young people are very sensitive to that. They can tell when a brand genuinely wants to contribute to the community and when someone is simply trying to sell them something.
If you’re genuinely invested in building the community, people are more likely to connect with what you’re doing. It’s not just about putting a product in front of them. There’s got to be a greater purpose.
For those who have attended SneakerLAH but haven’t experienced LahLahLand before, what’s different about this year’s festival?
BC: There are so many different elements now. MakanLAH brings food into the picture, while CardsLAH is a new segment that’s been growing tremendously. We’ve also introduced WatchesLAH, which is something I’m personally interested in, and expanded into thrifting.
We’re bringing different cultures into one space. It’s no longer just about what you personally like, but also about recognising that the people who love sneakers and streetwear are often consumers of other cultures, too.
So the idea is that these communities aren’t as separate as people might think?
BC: Exactly. When I attend trading-card events or esports gatherings, you can see how people dress. They’re wearing sneakers and streetwear, too. We’re all connected in some way.
And we’re Malaysians. We all love food, so having a food section makes sense. Watches are interesting because, last year, we had a vendor selling vintage watches, and I saw something happening right in front of me. I was hanging out upstairs and noticed a lot of young people gathering around the watches.
They weren’t necessarily familiar with the brands, but they understood the vintage look. They were buying into the aesthetic. People are becoming more educated about shapes, design and how things look, even if they don’t know the entire history of a brand. That’s why I felt it was time for WatchesLAH to make its debut.
Trading cards have exploded in popularity over the past two years especially, and the Pokémon World Championships are coming to Singapore in 2027. What impact do you think major international events like these will have on the region’s collecting community?
BC: We recently saw a Pokémon takeover at KLCC, and that was insane. I’m a Pokémon fan myself, so it’s exciting to see how much the community has grown. I think people sometimes focus too much on the buying and selling, but that’s only a small part of it. When you zoom out, you see a community that has grown around a franchise with 30 years of history. There’s nostalgia, collecting, competition and the friendships that come with sharing an interest.
I don’t think we’ve reached the peak yet. I feel there’s still so much room for this community to grow. We’ll be thinking about how to bring more of that into LahLahLand. Perhaps we could organise a few satellite events leading up to a major event like the World Championships. It’s something we’d like to explore.
Which brands and collaborations are you most excited about at LahLahLand this year?
BC: First things first, a shout out to ASICS for believing in us since our first collaboration. We began working together in 2018, and the first shoe, the Nasi Lemak, came out in 2019. They approached us and asked us to work on it within a month. Everything turned out well, and we’re now at our fifth collaboration with the ASICS GEL-KAYANO 20 “ICE KACANG”.
After Nasi Lemak, we had the Petronas Twin Towers, followed by Teh Tarik and MAMEE Monster. The Ice Kacang is the latest chapter.
Back then, there weren’t many international brands willing to work on collaborations like these or associate themselves with a community event. For ASICS to believe in our community enough to let us create a collaborative shoe was a huge deal.
What about the local brands?
BC: As for local brands, I’m excited about Against Lab, Aegis, Futuremade, and the Harsh x ALLLOVE collaboration. OPT has also collaborated with Tep York. One collaboration that surprised me was Stoned & Co. working with Ed Hardy. There’s a lot happening in the local scene, including Pott Glasses developing the running sunglasses with a run club. Marrow, a local denim label, even has a line made in Japan.
If you look back five or six years ago, many of these developments would have been unheard of. Local brands are stepping up, and I think that’s exciting to see.
Of your collaborations with ASICS, which has been the most challenging to work on?
BC: The Ice Kacang was technically challenging because the GEL-KAYANO 20 isn’t an easy shoe to design. It has so many components, so there’s a lot to consider. It’s not as straightforward as the GEL-LYTE III.
The MAMEE collaboration was challenging in a different way. We worked with ASICS and MAMEE, so we had to get both parties on the same page. I wanted noodle-shaped laces, for example, and it took about three months to realise that idea.
That experience taught us a lot about how to approach a collaboration. It’s not just about coming up with a concept. You have to figure out how to translate it into a product, work with the technical limitations and make sure everyone involved understands the vision.
Why Ice Kacang? Why did you decide to turn this particular Malaysian dessert into a sneaker?
BC: It’s one of my favourite local desserts. It’s as simple as that.
I’ve lost a lot of weight over the years. Five years ago, I was much bigger, and food has always been part of my life. Nasi lemak was the first food-inspired shoe, the Twin Towers represented Kuala Lumpur, and teh tarik was something I drink alongside my nasi lemak. MAMEE Monster was my go-to snack, and ice kacang is my favourite dessert.
So, in a way, each collaboration reflects a different part of my life and the things I enjoy. They’re all things that people here can relate to, too.
The colourway is particularly distinctive. How did you translate the different ingredients of ice kacang into the design?
BC: When you look at ice kacang, the first colour that pops out is pink because of the rose syrup. That was the main element we wanted to capture, and then we started adding the other colours.
The challenge was balancing everything without making the shoe look too out of this world. Ice kacang is colourful, but you can’t simply put every colour on a sneaker and expect it to work. You have to think about the proportions and how the different elements come together.
The GEL-KAYANO 20 has a lot of technical details, so we could use those elements to tell the story of the dessert. The white represents the shaved ice, the pink references the syrup, and the yellow brings in the sweet corn. Even the smaller details have their own references.
Do you have a favourite ice kacang spot in Kuala Lumpur?
BC: Maybe it’s time to stop gatekeeping this but there’s an aunty who sells ice kacang at the Setapak Pasar near Ayer Panas. I haven’t been there in years, but that has always been my favourite.
For somewhere a little more well-known, I’d say Kwong Wah. There’s something about these local spots that makes the dessert even more special. It’s not just about the ingredients, but also the memories and the people associated with them.
What’s been the most rewarding part of working with ASICS?
BC: They really trust the collaborator. A lot of brands want to work with artists, designers and communities, but sometimes they don’t give them enough creative freedom. They still want to be the chef, too. You need to let people cook. Of course, there have to be guidelines, but you also need to give collaborators room to bring their ideas to life.
We’ve had five collaborations with ASICS, and it’s been a great experience because they’ve allowed us that creative freedom. I’ve worked with many brands in the past, and I feel genuinely blessed that ASICS is willing to collaborate with a community event like ours and trust us to tell local stories to the world.
What are your aspirations for LahLahLand over the next decade?
BC: Moving forward, I hope LahLahLand is here to stay. Nothing lasts forever, so I don’t take any of this for granted. Hopefully, we’ll still be here for another decade.
My eldest daughter is 10 now. It would be amazing if, one day, she could bring her friends to LahLahLand and the event would still be relevant to their generation. That would be awesome.
By then, perhaps I’d let the younger generation take over. I’d sit down with my daughter, Kayleigh, and see what she wants to do with it.
Does that mean we could see KidsLAH in the future?
BC: You never know. [Laughs]
Note : The information in this article is accurate as of the date of publication.
