I am a sneakerhead episode 199 - @Saw_Ponce
First up, could you please introduce yourself?
My name is Saulo and I’m 33 years old. I live in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands (Spain). I was born and raised here, I studied medicine at the local university and at the moment I work as a dermatologist in one of the two main hospitals on the island. Apart from sneakers, I also love videogames, gastronomy and padel.
Do you remember what your first pair of sneakers that you really cared about was?
I have loved sneakers since I was in high school. Not being a skater at all, I used to wear mainly skate shoes and I had a pretty decent collection of Vans back then (definitely my tastes have changed a lot from the early 00s). After that, during my college years, I bought some pairs now and then, but I did not collect or cared about sneakers in such an active way.
I would say that my real obsession started back in 2016/2017, thanks to social media and especially thanks to a colleague (and also a good friend now), who was a huge sneakerhead. I quickly began to care again about what I wore on foot, looking for nice pairs and growing my knowledge about different sneaker brands. If I had to choose a pair that started it all, that would be a pair of Diadora N9000 “Green/Rosemary” that I bought from a local store. I’d say it was all downhill from there.
How many pairs do you currently have? Are you planning on keeping that number steady or growing/decreasing it?
I can’t tell the exact number, but probably around 100-120 pairs right now. I’m kind of a “box freak” and I try to keep every pair in its original box, so space is starting to become a problem. I’m lucky enough to have a girlfriend who is ok with having one room of our house almost turned into a warehouse.
I gotta admit that 2022 was a bit crazy, so I’m trying to slow down a bit in 2023, but that’s more easily said than done.
What’s the community like in the Canary Islands, have you met any other local enthusiasts or is everything online?
There’s not a big sense of community around sneakers here in the Canary Islands, but I do know there are plenty of other enthusiasts with sick collections. Although I live in a big city in Spain and the EU, it’s still a quite remote place and that makes everything harder. We have some cool local shops, but nothing close to any other main city in Europe. Due to our location, we also have a different tax regime from the rest of Spain. That’s an advantage for many things on a daily basis but makes buying online a real pain in the ass, and many brands and sneaker shops just won’t ship anything here.
You seem to have a great variety of sneakers in your collection, do you have any favourite brands?
My favourite brand has to be New Balance, and my favourite model is the “Made in UK” 991. I remember grabbing on sale a pair of “Made in UK” 1530 and a pair of “Made in US” 998 and being amazed by the looks, the quality and the comfort. After that, it quickly became the brand that I wear and own the most. Unfortunately, I came a bit late to the party and missed the golden years of the brand, so seeing New Balance gain more popularity in the last 1-2 years has been nice on one hand, as we are getting more and more interesting collabs and reappearance of old silhouettes. On the other hand, it’s a bit sad seeing how the brand has jumped straight into the “hype train” and the resale game.
If I have to mention the other two brands to complete my top 3, those would be Asics and Diadora. As a big fan of Japanese culture Asics just hits the right spot, and the Gel-Lyte III is hands down one of my favourite silhouettes. Not much more to say about Diadora apart from that their “Made in Italy” pairs are one of the most quality pairs that you can find out there, and the backstories behind many of them are so cool.
Have you bought anything in 2023 so far?
Yes, I have misbehaved a couple of times these months… But I promise I’m trying! If I had to choose one pickup so far, it would be the Extra Butter x Diadora S8000 “Giallo 2.0”. As I said before, there’s something special about Diadora’s “Made in Italy” pairs, and the colourway on those is just gorgeous.
What’s your favourite pair in your collection?
Oh man, I couldn’t tell! I’ve really tried to figure it out, but I keep changing my mind. I think that question is going to stay unanswered for now...
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