Style News: Shoe brand On opens in S’pore, hair salon 35a’s Sunday market, SK-II’s pickleball pop-up

Cult sportswear brand On’s Singapore flagship

On, the Swiss purveyor of funky-looking running shoes, opened its first local store on July 11 at Jewel Changi Airport.

Singapore is the second South-east Asian city where the performance-meets-aesthetic brand has set up a permanent base, after Jakarta.

The first floor of the 9,300 sq ft duplex is dedicated to its athletic range, like bestseller models the Cloudmonster (from $269) and Cloudrunner (from $239).

On, founded in 2010, is known for its signature cushioning technology that gives its trainers the telltale “hole-punched” look and bouncing-on-clouds feel that fans swear by. What began as a mostly Swiss following has, from 2021, gained rapid international ardour.

In the centre is a wall of shoes, arranged in cubby hole-like drawers that can be pulled out to access the stock kept behind it.

The flagship is the first in the world to showcase the brand’s latest tie-up with Hollywood A-lister Zendaya. The “Zendaya edit” includes a modish blue-grey jumpsuit, boleros and a backless tennis dress.

On the second floor is the lifestyle range. Athleisure windbreakers, tank tops and neutral-coloured casual shoes are flanked by a tennis corner – carrying products co-designed with Swiss former No. 1 player Roger Federer – and a wall of outdoor gear. A modest kids section has been carved out too.

Info: On Store Singapore, 02-230/231 Jewel Changi Airport, 78 Airport Boulevard

35a Sunday market

Trendy local hair salon 35a is hosting an arty Sunday market on July 27.

Indie home-grown clothing brands such as streetwear outfit Tell Your Children, known for its fun graphic tees, and ice-dye specialist Fassbender and Melloncollie, are among the 20 or so participating vendors.

Billed as a one-stop event for community and creativity, the market also boasts books, art, small-batch wine, coffee and music by way of DJs spinning live and a selection of records for sale.

Also at the market are ’zine store Shrub and teeth jewellery business Third Eye Toothgems, run by a trained dental assistant. Designer furniture store Grafunkt, based in Joo Chiat, will be in attendance at the Kampong Bahru venue too.

Info: 35A Kampong Bahru Road, from 1 to 9pm on July 27

Keen launches music festival-friendly shoe

American footwear brand Keen, favoured by music festival regulars, has launched the sixth edition of its annual Fuji Rock Festival collaboration shoe ($179), in time for 2025’s jamboree from July 25 to 27.

This latest design is built on the trusty Hyperport H2 model, with its roomy toebox for all-day comfort, bungee laces and a grippy rubber sole for better traction on wet surfaces. All the better to get down and dirty in at the Naeba Ski Resort festival camp grounds in Japan.

Egg-yolk yellow accents on the shoe’s body brighten the grey-green colourway of the kicks, made for the Fuji Rock Festival itinerary of stomping at sets, trekking between stages and ducking around in streams.

Info: Available on the Keen online store or at all Outside stores

SK-II serves up pickleball-themed pop-up

Pickleball meets luxury beauty at SK-II’s July 18 to 20 pop-up at Chijmes’ patch of green, known as the Mini Lawn.

It is an event of firsts. The Japanese brand’s latest innovations in suncare – the GenOptics Airy UV Cream, a kind of untinted sunscreen, and the CC Primer from the same line ($98 each) – will make their Singapore debut at SK-II’s first sports-themed pop-up.

Visitors can take pictures at SK-II’s custom pickleball court set-up for a “serve and snap” moment, or try their hand at classic game Connect4, with a twist. Shoppers can try the products which sold out at launch in Japan in April.

Those who share their pop-up experience via an Instagram post or reel, or a TikTok video, also stand a chance to score the complete new suncare range worth $294. Three winners will be selected at random each day on July 19 and 20.

Info: From July 18 to 20, 10.30am to 8.30pm, at Chijmes Mini Lawn, 30 Victoria Street. The event will be closed from 1 to 6.30pm on July 18.

Diesel x Melissa capsule collection

Jelly shoe brand Melissa and uber-trendy fashion label Diesel make an odd, but not unlikable, couple.

The two names have teamed up for a capsule collection of three shoes. The Quantum Thong, Quantum Platform and Quantum Sneaker X – released on July 15 – fuse Melissa’s bubbly look and pop art charm with Diesel’s futuristic sensibility.

The “sneaker” ($499) resembles a nautilus in profile and a reimagined duck’s foot from the top-down. Coming in red, black or clear green, the model is the loudest statement piece of the latest collection and is meant to be genderless.

The Quantum Thong flip flop ($199) is the most muted of the bunch with its classic low-heeled, Y-strapped shape. Available in four colours, the 100 per cent PVC make of the shoes gives the familiar style a punky, clear look. 

The Quantum Platform ($299), in three colours, is a chunky, open-toe number, with soles more rounded than typical and sporting the same wave-forms as the sneaker model. A notch in the centre of the sole creates a D-shaped “hole” underfoot, obliquely recalling Diesel’s monogram. It is a clever blend of two striking aesthetics – one cutesy, the other sulkily cool.

Info: Available online at shopmelissa.com and diesel.com, and at Diesel’s Ion Orchard store at B1-26/27/27A Orchard Turn