Honest Review: Singapore & Malaysia Streetwear & Athleisure Shopping & Exclusives – Nike, Adidas, Footlocker & More

Hi Everyone! Since it’s Boxing Day week I figured I would update you guys with another shopping blog post I have been meaning to post for some time now. This post recaps my shopping experience in both Singapore and Malaysia including tips, recommendations, and insight to know before you shop, especially for any foreigners looking to shop at these stores. There were some disappointing moments, but also some great finds, a bit similar to my Tokyo shopping experience. Make sure to check out the pictures and tips in this blog post and follow me on social media (TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook) as I will be posting more Singapore and Malaysia travel content in the future! Below are some visual previews of what you can read below!

Singapore

Nike

My hotel was thankfully near the iconic Orchard road which is home to many stores and malls so it was fun to explore. The first store I wanted to check out was the Nike store (268 Orchard Road) here because I remember seeing K-pop artist Sorn, host some events here before. This store was massive and truly a beauty to look at with the many displays (you will see in the video) they had, my favourite was the sneaker wheel and the sneaker stone creature that was made exclusively for Air Max Day by artist Tobyato. The sneaker and clothing selections were ok but not special. However, I was really intrigued in thier Nike By You customization station. The set up was similar to the one in World of Flight Shibuya but you didnt need a Nike ID. However, they do tell you to try on whatever sizes they have in-stock first of the available t-shirts and it is good thing they do because the t-shirts are EXTREMELY tight. I understand that it is atheltic fit and sometimes it can hug in the right places but the fit was so off from my regular sizes. I wear Nike XL for a baggy fit but I found even the 3XL was snug for me. This was really dissappointing especially because I wanted to get a t-shirt customized since they had a design in my mother tongue, Tamil, which I don’t see often but it is one of the official langauges in Singapore. Unfortunaltey some designs can only be made on certain products so keep that in mind and in terms of the decals they had there was no limit on how many you can choose. I beleive there are some customization options at Jewel Airport but unfortunately I didn’t have enough time to check it out.

Adidas

Right beside the Nike Store was the Adidas store (270 Orchard Road). I was also excited to see the Tamil branding across the store which makes sense since it is one of the main languages in Singapore. I did find Adidas has better selection in terms of exclusive items and sneakers. They had a lot of BAPE, Sambas and exclusive Singapore t-shirts in-stock. They had this cool and fun Lunar New Year / Year of the Dragon collaboration t-shirt that was designed by local artist Erika Tay. I really liked the look of it as it gave me Digimon vibes and the size they had (either 2x or 3x) was snug but didnt feel too bad so I got that. They also had customization available here as well but frankly, nothing was that interesting to customize here so I ended up buying a pair of the Singapore shoe laces that had Adidas repeated in the main lanugages of Singapore. Tip: you can claim duty tax free if you spend $100 and you can also get a one-time 15% off code if you sign up for adidas Singapore via the app. If you already have the app like I do I don’t recommend doing the 15% off code only because it messes up with your account and notifications after.

Foot Locker

A little further down was the Foot Locker (218 Orchard Road) which was beside 313@Somerset (I will talk about in another post) and this was the best in terms of sizing and really unique. I was curious to see if they had anything exclusive here in terms of sneakers but I was more impressed by what else they had inside. Firstly, when I walked in they were playing Priya Ragu which was really cool and then I noticed that had a beautiful basketbal court inside but FYI, you need to make a reservation in advance. TIP: Visit the Foot Locker Singapore page in advance to see if the registraion site is up again to book or go to the court when you land if you are there for a few days to scan the QR code and register that way. In terms of clothing, they had a few things but one thing that was exclusive to the region was a Puma x NCT 127 collab that I really liked and I got the camp shirt which was great for me as I cope with Singapore’s humidity and the fit was regular size.

I also included a picture of Uniqlo in the collage above because I did go here as well and although I didn’t get anything the sizing was the same as it was in Japan and Canada. Also, the Harry Potter collabortion was available a few weeks earlier than the Canadian release. I also included clips of me going to the special Don Quijote. There was so some cool stuff here but everything is pretty much imported so all the prices are jacked up so I would recommend only getting what you think you cant get anywhere else and the yellow tote bag as a nice souvenir.

Malaysia

Nike

Since I went to the Nike store in Singapore, only right I go to the one at Kuala Lumpur! Right off the bat there was a different in selection and customer service. I really did appreciate the service here and I learned a lot of new things while shopping here, and thankfully I was able to get something customized.
The staff helping me told me that the Nike in Malaysia is owned by another company called GMG which owns Timberland and Vans there as well. That’s why next time you go, you will see the lanyards the staff wear dont say Nike but says that instead and therefore, your Nike app won’t be useful here. I went to the Nike store at the Pavillion (Lot No. C5.03.00, Level 5, Pavilion KL, 168, Jln Bukit Bintang, Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur) which is inside the Pavillion KL, the same mall where I tried Ralph’s Coffee. Fun fact: Nike Pavillion is the only place in Malysia where you can get Nike by You done so if you do want to do this in Malaysia, then make sure to do it here and on a day where you have a bit of time. The staff were working hard but keep in mind it was really busy. Similar to the Nike By You restrictions in Singapore, some designs are exclusive to certain products. They had shirts in different options but honestly the sizing was really off I tried 3XL and it was ok but still hugging in stomach area. The Athletic cut is really tight so that’s why I ended up going with getting a hat customized. Each sticker they hot press on is 6 ringets each and I ended up getting 7 total (my name, the exclusive Malaysian Tiger Nike design, and Nike Malaysia logo) on the hat which was 89 ringets to bring the total to 131 ringers which at the time came up to $38 CAD which is usually the normal price for a cap on it’s own.

Atmos

After I visited the Petronas Towers, I walked across to the mall beside, Suria KLCC (Lot 155, First, 50088 Kuala Lumpur). Inside, I saw a brand I am very familiar with and a fan of, Atmos. I have been a fan of Atmos for many years now and own a pair of Atmos sneakers, including the Atmos Air Max 95 “Animal Instinct”. I was in awe of the layout beyond the beautiful assortment of Be@rbricks they had on display. I wanted to know if they had anything exclusive to Malaysia and while browsing around I saw that there was a unique looking pair of camo denim. The pants was made out of durable material similar, if not, denim and instead of traditional tree or tiger camo, this was actually in a dragon camo print which I never seen before. The staff working there told me that this was actually a special collaboration with KL brand “Against Lab” and he was genuinely in awe of how good the pants looked on me. Keep in mind, even for the pants I had to size up maybe one or two sizes and although the waist area is a bit tight, it’s not too bad everywhere else. While I was ready to check out I saw that if you spent a minimum of 450 RM plus 49 RM you can get a free gift and it ws a massive Atmos box featuring a lot of goodies including a blind box Be@rbrick, cream and more. Tip: There were a lot of fun promotions going on at Suria KLCC so make sure to ask the staff at the bottom floor to see what you have to do and what stores are participating to get your prizes.

Central Market

The last place I wanted to mention was Central Market. I did create a seperate video for this above but I wanted to mention this place because you might not expect to find street wear or clothing similar to the other brands above but there are small busineses that set up booths here which you can get. The shirt I am wearing above when I was invited to Arcadia Earth was purchased at Central Market from a brand called Malayan Wolfpack. I talked to the owner who was a young and nice guy and he clearly cared about the quality and design but also understood the difference of fit when it comes to clothes here compared to North America. If you don’t see any good clothes when you go here, you will find some refreshing drinks and snacks. I also included a picture of The Exchange TRX which was another cool mall filled with amazing activations and is about 8 minutes away. I didn’t get anything from there (almost got Gentle Monster) but they did have a lot of good options there as well. TIP: Bring cash to central market since some vendors accept that but also because the network/wifi there is not the best.

Overall

My honest thoughts about shopping in both places is that they are opposite with both having positives and drawbacks. I will say that the customer service is drastically different because in Singapore I found that you pretty much had to beg to get some help and even when you do, there isn’t much help nor any social skills being present. I did find it when observing people at the mall they weren’t as engaged with eachother when hanging out compared to other places I have been to or to the people in Toronto. I am happy that the one person that did help me in Singapore Nike was kind and was helpful. In Malayisa, I found that all the places I shopped at had 10/10 customer service which I am thankful for. In terms of selection and options I think Singapore does have more than Malayisa but it depends on what you are looking for. Nonetheless, I am grateful to be in a position to explore these places, shop there and write about it to hopefully help you if you plan on going anytime soon. Let me know your thoughts if you have been here before and make sure to follow me on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook as I will be posting more Singapore and Malaysia travel content in the future!