It's kind of a 'blink and you'll miss it' hub but on any given day if you're in Narwee in southern Sydney, don't be surprised to see a queue of teens in a long snake line, wrapping around 2 Fisher Place.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
Waiting to get a glimpse or lucky snag of a pair of highly-sought after sneakers, are the peeps gathering at Crep Shop.
Call it a blend of fashion and rap, where young people from across Sydney go to mingle over pairs of rare shoes that only those in the know, know their precious commodity.
With more than 53,000 Instagram followers, this sneaker store works on consignment, with anyone welcome to see if their one-off vintage soles carry some value.
From Nike and Asics, to Yeezy Originals and Air Jordan, Crep Shop's huge fan base does the talking - and walking it seems, with international rap musicians converging on the suburban hub like a flame to a moth.
But it's more than a retail space. Owner Mike Mikhaeel, 25, who already operated the brand successfully online for the past several years, launched into a physical space so youth would have a place to safely gather in the community, and unite over common interests.
"There's not anything like this in the area that does what we do, especially for kids," he said. "We are looking out for the kids and trying to make them happy by giving them a place to come to and hang out after school.
"I've got a Streetfighter arcade game they play, which we don't charge them for. It's like a nostalgic thing for them."
The Rockdale resident said his goal from the start was to encourage kids to socialise over a shared passion - beats.
"Online competition is saturated but even though Narwee is a quiet area, I wanted to give young people a place where they can go to meet up and talk about their favourite artists," he said. "It's what we're about, not just selling shoes, but having a community feel. We wrap our brand around the theme of rap culture.
"I wanted something like this when I was a young kid. It's somewhere local for kids to go. So instead of having to travel into the city, we have something in the neighbourhood that's providing that."
What gets them in are the gear - discontinued turned exclusive pairs of shoes.
IN OTHER NEWS:
"You wouldn't find this in a normal store," Mike said. "People are willing to pay a little bit extra. The most expensive ones I've sold was a pair of Louis Vuitton Air Force, to UK artist Central Cee. The re-sell value was $13,000."
The rest of the world has also taken notice. Word spreads fast, and through referrals within the rap arena, Crep Shop is getting some big names through the doors, for regular meet and greets. It has hosted several Australian, US and UK artists, including British rapper Knucks.
"Kids were travelling from all across Sydney to see these rappers," Mike said. "At the last one we had about 200 people. A lot of people have seen what we've done here and they wanted to replicate it. Other bigger brands have reached out to these big rappers and they've been knocked back."
Next up on April 17 from 3.30pm is an appearance by UK rap musician SL, whose hit song Tropical got more than 50 million views on YouTube and million more downloads on Spotify. He performs in Sydney's Metro Theatre on April 18.
"This time we've added thousands of dollars worth of giveaways to the event so we are expecting a larger turnout," Mike said.
