In the rhythmic pulse of city streets and the steady beat of urban fashion, a subculture has emerged that transcends mere footwear – it’s a lifestyle, a passion, and a vibrant tapestry of personal expression. Welcome to “Sole Stories,” an immersive interview editorial series that delves into the fascinating world of sneaker enthusiasts and the tales woven into the very fabric of their beloved kicks.

In this series, we step into the closets of individuals whose lives are intertwined with the iconic rubber soles, exploring the narratives behind each pair of sneakers they carefully curate. From the retro classics that evoke nostalgia to the limited-edition releases that command admiration, these individuals are not just collectors; they are storytellers, each sneaker encapsulating a chapter of their lives.

“Sole Stories” is more than a celebration of fashion; it’s an exploration of personal histories, cultural influences, and the ever-evolving landscape of sneaker culture. Our interviews transcend the superficial and delve into the heart of why sneakers hold such a special place in the lives of these enthusiasts.

Join us as we journey through the backstreets of passion and delve into the closets of those whose sneaker stories are as diverse as the styles they showcase. From the seasoned veterans with closets that could rival a sneaker store to the newcomers whose stories are just beginning, “Sole Stories” promises a glimpse into a world where fashion meets narrative, and each step is a testament to an individual’s unique journey.

So, lace up your favorite pair, and let’s embark on this odyssey through the colorful, dynamic, and ever-evolving world of sneakers. Get ready to be inspired, and moved, and perhaps, find a new appreciation for the stories that unfold beneath those perfectly crafted soles.

In this edition, we speak to Aleksandra “Sasha” Rybakova, a Sydney-based entrepreneur, fashion enthusiast and serious Nike SB Dunk collector who has spent years building a collection of some of the most sought-after and culturally significant sneakers in the game.

With a collection featuring Pigeons, Blue Lobsters, Orange Lobsters, Rukus Crawfish, StrangeLoves, White Widows, Born x Raised, Green Powerpuff Girls and Syracuse, Sasha’s relationship with sneakers goes far beyond simply owning expensive shoes. For her, each pair represents a story, a hunt, a moment in sneaker culture and a connection to an era when getting the right pair meant putting in the work.

Now, as she competes in Miss Russia Worldwide, Sasha is bringing two seemingly different worlds together. The crown, the fashion, the sneakers and the culture all form part of the same story. Rather than separating the identities, she embraces them — proving that being a woman in the sneaker world doesn’t mean fitting into a single definition of what a collector should look like.

Beyond the collection itself, Sasha is using the opportunity to give some of her sneakers a new purpose. She plans to sell approximately half of her Nike SB collection, contributing 20% of the profit from those sales to KidsCan, a New Zealand charity supporting children experiencing hardship.

Her sneaker journey is part obsession, part fashion, part history and part personal archive. But as the culture continues to evolve from overnight queues and hard-to-find releases into bots, resale platforms and an endless stream of drops, Sasha is asking a bigger question: is the game still the game?

To understand where sneaker culture has been, where it’s heading and why some pairs are worth holding onto while others deserve a new home, we sat down with Sasha for the latest chapter of SOLE STORIES.

SOLE STORIES

IS THE GAME STILL THE GAME?

From overnight queues and impossible-to-find grails to bots, resale platforms and endless drops, sneaker culture has changed. Long-time Nike SB collector Aleksandra “Sasha” Rybakova is asking whether the chase still feels the same — while putting part of her collection toward something bigger.

 

There was a time when buying sneakers required commitment.

Not turn your notifications on commitment.

Real commitment.

You knew the release date. You knew which store had them. You knew somebody was probably already standing outside. Sometimes you lined up overnight, talked shit with strangers in the queue, compared collections, traded rumours about stock numbers and prayed your size was still there when you finally reached the front.

Getting the shoe was only half of it.

The other half was the story.

That was the world that helped turn sneakers into something much bigger than footwear. They became identity, status, obsession, art, fashion and, for some, a lifelong collection.

Then the game got bigger.

Bots arrived. Resale became an industry. Sneakers were suddenly being discussed as investments. Collaborations multiplied. Every other week brought another “must-have” release. Pairs changed hands without ever touching pavement.

Somewhere between scarcity becoming a business model and hype becoming an algorithm, an uncomfortable question emerged:

IS THE GAME STILL THE GAME?

For Sydney-based business owner and Nike SB Dunk collector Aleksandra “Sasha” Rybakova, that question has become personal.

Her collection isn’t a wall of whatever happened to be trending last year. There are Pigeons, Blue Lobsters, Orange Lobsters, Rukus Crawfish with the special box, StrangeLoves, White Widows, Born x Raised, Green Powerpuff Girls, Syracuse and plenty of other pairs carrying their own stories.

These are shoes that once had people lining up overnight, hunting through stores and paying serious money simply for the privilege of owning them.

Now Sasha is preparing to let roughly half of the collection go.

And the reason has nothing to do with falling out of love with sneakers.

Sasha is currently competing in Miss Russia Worldwide, meaning the same woman who spent years building a serious Nike SB collection is now appearing in a sash and tiara while sitting on stacks of sneaker boxes.

The visual contradiction is exactly the point.

As part of her Miss Russia Worldwide journey, Sasha is raising money for KidsCan, a New Zealand charity supporting children experiencing hardship. She plans to contribute 20% of the profit from the sneakers she sells to the cause.

For Sasha, the collection isn’t disappearing.

It’s changing hands.

And maybe that’s a fitting next chapter for a culture that has spent decades obsessing over who gets to own what.

FRANK 151 × SASHA RYBAKOVA

ON COLLECTING, SB DUNKS AND THE CHANGING SNEAKER GAME

 

FRANK 151: Let’s establish your credentials before somebody sees the crown and assumes you bought your first pair of Dunks last Tuesday. What’s actually in the collection?

SASHA: [Laughs.] That’s exactly why I wanted the shoes to be such a big part of the shoot.

I’ve collected Nike SB Dunks for years. I have Pigeons, Blue Lobsters, Orange Lobsters, Rukus Crawfish with the special box, Born x Raised, StrangeLove, White Widow, Green Powerpuff Girls, Syracuse and quite a few others.

Some I bought because I loved the design. Some because of the story behind them. Some because finding them became a mission.

And that’s probably the part people who aren’t collectors don’t understand.

You can look at a pair and think, They’re just shoes.

But to the person who chased that pair for years, they’re not just shoes.

 

FRANK 151: When did you realise you weren’t just buying sneakers anymore — you were collecting?

SASHA: There’s definitely a point where you look around and realise, Okay, this has become a thing.

At first you’re buying shoes you like. Then you start learning the history. You know the collaborations. You recognise a shoe from across the street. You start having pairs you don’t even want to wear because they’re too special.

Then suddenly you’re storing boxes like they’re important legal documents.

That’s when you know you have a problem. [Laughs.]

 

 

FRANK 151: What attracted you specifically to SB Dunks?

SASHA: They have personality.

A lot of fashion becomes very safe once it gets expensive. SBs have always had this ability to be completely ridiculous and still somehow work.

A lobster. A pigeon. A Valentine’s shoe covered in hearts. Crawfish.

Try explaining some of these concepts to someone who isn’t into sneakers and they sound insane.

But there’s creativity and culture behind them.

That’s what I love.

 

FRANK 151 : Do you remember when sneaker releases actually felt like events?

SASHA: Absolutely.

That’s part of why I’m asking whether the game is still the same.

There was something exciting about knowing people were willing to line up for hours — sometimes overnight — because they genuinely wanted a particular shoe.

You couldn’t just instantly find everything in your size through an app.

There was hunting involved.

And when you finally found something you’d wanted for a long time, it meant more.

Now almost everything has a price attached to it immediately. You can miss the drop and five minutes later someone is trying to sell it to you.

Convenient? Yes.

Romantic? Not really.

 

FRANK 151: So what killed the romance?

SASHA: I don’t think one thing killed it.

Resale changed it. Bots changed it. Social media changed it. The sheer number of releases changed it.

At some point hype became incredibly organised.

And hype isn’t supposed to feel organised.

When there are constantly new “must-have” shoes, eventually you stop believing that you must have any of them.

 

FRANK 151: There was also a period where people genuinely talked about sneakers like investments? What do you think about that subject?

SASHA: Which is crazy when you think about it.

People weren’t asking, Do I actually like this shoe?

They were asking, What’s resale?

That changes your relationship with collecting.

Of course value matters. I’m not going to pretend collectors don’t know what their shoes are worth. We absolutely do.

But if the only reason you want a sneaker is because you think another person will pay more for it next month, are you collecting sneakers or trading assets?

 

FRANK 151: And now parts of the resale market have cooled?

SASHA: Which makes the whole thing interesting.

Because when prices stop going up automatically, you’re left with a very simple question:

DO YOU ACTUALLY LIKE THE SHOE?

I think that’s healthy for sneaker culture.

Maybe some of the hype needed to disappear.

 

FRANK 151: You’re now selling around half your collection. Is that because you’ve fallen out of love with sneakers?

SASHA: No.

I think I’ve fallen out of love with the idea that I need to own everything I love.

That’s different.

There are pairs I’ll keep because I genuinely can’t imagine selling them. They mean something to me.

But there are also shoes sitting beautifully inside boxes.

At some point you have to ask yourself: Am I enjoying owning this, or am I just maintaining an archive?

And right now I have an opportunity to make part of that collection useful in another way.

 

FRANK 151: Which brings us to KidsCan?

SASHA: Yes.

I’m competing in Miss Russia Worldwide, and I wanted the experience to represent more than photos, dresses and a crown.

I’m raising funds for KidsCan, and I decided that with the sneakers I sell, 20% of the profit will be contributed to KidsCan.

These shoes have given me years of enjoyment. If letting some of them go can now create something positive for children who actually need support, that’s a pretty good next chapter for them.

 

FRANK 151: Was the sneaker sale created specifically for the pageant?

SASHA: The pageant gave me the reason to actually do something I’d already been thinking about.

It would have been very easy to just ask people to donate.

But I wanted to put something of mine into it as well.

My collection has financial value, but it also has personal value. That’s why selling part of it means something to me.

I’m not asking someone else to sacrifice something while I just wear a sash and post a link.

I want to participate.

 

FRANK 151: We need to address the visual situation here. You’re literally wearing a Miss Russia Worldwide sash and tiara with SB Dunks?

SASHA: Which is hilarious. [Laughs.]

And I love it.

I’m not suddenly going to become a completely different person because I’m participating in a beauty pageant.

I own a beauty business. I love fashion. I love dressing up. I also have boxes and boxes of sneakers.

Those things can exist in the same person.

Actually, I think that’s much more interesting than trying to become someone’s idea of what a beauty queen is supposed to look like.

 

FRANK 151: Beauty pageants and sneaker culture don’t exactly share a traditional uniform?

SASHA: That’s why the photos work.

The crown says one thing. The shoes say something completely different.

But they’re both me.

I think women are constantly encouraged to pick an identity that people can understand quickly.

Are you glamorous? Are you a businesswoman? Are you a mother? Are you a sneakerhead? Are you feminine? Are you into street culture?

Why can’t the answer just be yes?

 

FRANK 151: Being a female sneaker collector can still get you interrogated in a way men often aren’t.

SASHA: Definitely.

Sometimes there’s this little test.

“Okay, but do you know what these are?”

Yes.

They’re on my feet.

[Laughs.]

It’s funny because a man can wear an expensive sneaker and people assume he knows sneakers. A woman wears the same pair and sometimes people assume a boyfriend bought them for her.

I don’t need to prove anything.

The collection can do that for me.

 

FRANK 151: What’s the hardest pair in your collection to let go?

SASHA: That’s dangerous because if I say it publicly, I’ll probably change my mind.

There are definitely several that are going to hurt.

The older and more culturally significant pairs are difficult because you know replacing them later might be expensive or impossible.

That’s why I’m not selling everything.

I’m trying to separate the shoes I genuinely love from the shoes I love simply because they’re collectible.

Those aren’t always the same thing.

 

FRANK 151: And what’s staying?

SASHA: Nice try.

[Laughs.]

You’ll have to see what’s missing from the sale.

 

FRANK 151: Do you think the sneaker game is dead?

SASHA: No.

I think one version of it might be.

And maybe that’s okay.

Culture doesn’t stay frozen because we liked it better in 2010.

The overnight queues, the secrecy around releases, the early SB era — you can’t recreate that exactly because the world that created it doesn’t exist anymore.

But people still love sneakers.

Kids are discovering old pairs for the first time. Collectors are going backwards instead of chasing every new release. People are learning the stories behind shoes.

Maybe the game isn’t dead.

Maybe people are just becoming more selective about playing it.

 

FRANK 151: What would make sneaker culture exciting to you again?

SASHA: Less noise.

I don’t need another shoe every five minutes.

Give me something with a story.

Give me something weird.

Give me something where I look at it and think, Who approved this? I need it.

That’s what SB has always been great at.

 

FRANK 151 : Last question. Years from now, which do you think you’ll remember more — the crown or the sneakers?

SASHA: Hopefully neither.

Hopefully I remember what I did with them.

A crown eventually goes into a box.

Sneakers already live in boxes.

What matters is what happened while you had people’s attention.

THE COLLECTION CHANGES HANDS

For Sasha, selling part of the collection isn’t an announcement that sneaker culture is over.

It might actually represent where sneaker culture goes next.

The speculative frenzy has cooled. The easy-money mythology around resale has taken a hit. The people left holding boxes have to decide why they bought them in the first place.

Some will hold.

Some will wear them into the ground.

Some will sell.

And in Sasha’s case, some of that value will leave the sneaker ecosystem altogether and go somewhere considerably more useful.

There is something fitting about it.

Sneaker culture has spent decades teaching people to obsess over scarcity:

Limited pairs.
Limited stock.
Limited access.

KidsCan deals with a very different kind of scarcity.

For one collector, at least, the answer is to turn a little of the former into help for the latter.

So, is the game still the game?

Probably not.

But maybe that’s the point.

The culture doesn’t have to stay frozen to remain meaningful. The queues can disappear. Resale prices can fall. The algorithms can move on to the next thing.

What remains is the reason people cared in the first place.

The shoes.

The stories.

And the people wearing them.

SOLE STORIES

Aleksandra “Sasha” Rybakova is currently competing in Miss Russia Worldwide. As part of her fundraising initiative, she plans to sell approximately half of her Nike SB collection and contribute 20% of the profit from those sales to KidsCan.