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Unbox Con 2022 paved way for people to find their own community and build a network they can trust
On Saturday, June 18, 2022, many joined the first-ever Unbox Con 2022, a convention for those who delve into the world of gaming, sneakers, toys, and technology at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.
See also: Unbox PH's Carlo Ople on Collecting Sneakers and Toys, Building a Team, and Chasing Dreams
It was an experience like no other, with curated segments, panel discussions, as well as interactive booths dedicated to those who have several different interests and hobbies.
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Not too far from the entrance, guests would notice the line leading towards the right side of the hall, where one could find Solid Toys' booth. Singapore-based artist Wetworks was stationed at their booth, signing figures for his fans while his two-foot-tall Shinigami was displayed for all to see.
"We had a lot of people fall in line as early as midnight or 1am earlier today to get their hands on our limited figures," Patrick Reyes, co-founder of Solid Toys, relates. Only 50 pieces of Shinagami: Pilipinas figures, a convention-exclusive design, were up for grabs.
Later during the program, Wetworks and Filipino artists Klaris, Creon Chkn, and Ej Sulit took centre stage to discuss the future of art toys.
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Collectables displayed for all to browse at Unbox Con 2022
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Several visitors also gathered around booths that sold sports trading cards, which are collectables that cost a fortune. Allen Huang, one of the merchants at Unbox Con 2022, shares that he has been selling sports cards for seven years as a hobby—an expensive one at that. "Before, [sports cards were] really cheap. One card used to cost PHP6,000 to PHP12,000 at most," he shares. "Pero ngayon, PHP200,000 [but now, it costs PHP200,000]." He currently has a Lebron James sports card priced at PHP1 million.
Above Sports trading cards are being sold at the event
Sports trading cards are being sold at the event
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Basketball fans and sneakerheads also had a chance to browse through grails from popular brands like Yeezy, Air Jordan, and New Balance.
Ox Street's interactive booth also attracted several sneakerheads by displaying two versions of Air Jordan 1 Mocha in separate glass containers and encouraging them to guess which is real and which is fake. Winners were given a chance to join the raffle to win their very own pair of Mochas.
See also: Ox Street is Every Sneaker Head's New Favourite Online Marketplace in Asia
Above Crowd begins to grow around Ox Street's booth where two versions (one is fake and one is real) of the Air Jordan 1 Mocha are displayed
Crowd begins to grow around Ox Street's booth where two versions (one is fake and one is real) of the Air Jordan 1 Mocha are displayed
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The Filipino-based NFT community and one of the biggest NFT communities in Southeast Asia, Diamond NFT Supercommunity, also has a booth set up at the event where some of their members showed up cosplaying different characters commissioned by their artists.
Their founder, who goes by Diamond Cruiser, explains that the paid membership gives access to in-person meetups, events, and information on upcoming projects. "We're also launching several business units like a marketplace where we expect to gain royalties and revenue and distribute it among the members who join us," explains Diamond Cruiser. There was a QR code displayed beside photos of the characters created by artists for the community members with a total value of around PHP50 million.
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The Diamond NFT Supercommunity founder, Diamond Cruiser, with other members at their booth
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A few personalities, including Alisson Shore (who performed his hit songs), Bigboy Cheng, and Unbox Con 2022's very own Carlo Ople, also made an appearance throughout the day.
Even when the event was about to end, people still gathered to witness Ople conclude the event. Many were still roaming around to check booths. Clearly, one day isn't enough, and we're already looking forward to the next Unbox Con.
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Christine Andas is a features writer and the style lead of Tatler Philippines. She mostly covers style-related content but enjoys writing about space, sneakers, and her favourite stars. She acquired a master's degree in Creative Writing at the University of Santo Tomas and has written young adult short stories which can be read online.
