Tamila: The WOAHman Behind 'No Boys Allowed'
'No Boys Allowed' is the first female focused platform in the GCC focused on female sneakerheads - a place where sneaker lovers can come together. Tamila Kochkarova is the woman behind the scene from building a community, photographing editorials, directing, styling, and do we need to go on?
Thanks for building a badass community for female sneakerheads. What inspired you to do so and what are your goals with the platform?
What inspired me to start this platform is definitely growing up in this region and not really being able to find a community of girls that are into same things as me. Constantly being labeled as a tomboy by girls, being told by adults that I’m not as feminine as others & how wrong that is simply because of my style. Which of course didn’t feel great growing up, but then once I did find a community of sneakerheads in the region, who were obviously mostly guys, they questioned my knowledge when it comes to sneakers and somewhat ridiculed me simply because I’m a girl. Going through all this I realized there definitely must be other girls that went through this, that I could reach out to and let them know they’re not alone! My initial goal with the platform was to build a community of female sneakerheads that would grow throughout the years, but at this point I’m realizing my long term goal is to hopefully open the first female sneaker-shop in the arab world. Inshallah!
The industry is seen to be quite male dominated even when it comes to collaborations. Who are some female/non-binary creatives you would like to see creatively involved in new drops?
Honestly, off the top of my head I’ll say Solange. This woman is a creative genius. Anything that she puts out, that she creates is pure gold. So I would love to see her work with honestly, any brand and I’m confident the result would be beyond amazing.
You have quite an exquisite sense of style and are easy to spot. What inspires your fashion sense and love for sneakers?
I definitely give all the credit for my style to my mother and my trips to Tokyo. My mom was always quite of a critic when it came to my style. She would be the first one to tell me whether she disliked whatever I wore, which was thankfully quite rare. My first trip to Tokyo was when I was 2, my parents were working there so during our stay they took a lot of photos of different people with different styles which definitely fascinated them. I remember looking through these images and simply being in awe of all these girls with the most courageous styles so I definitely knew I would go back there once I was older. Which I did, last year, twice. It was such a breath of fresh air. Seeing all the ways people expressed themselves through fashion and sneakers was so inspiring, which I’ll definitely never forget.
In the Dubai scene, are there any particular people who currently stand out to you in terms of style, creativity, and overall personality?
Definitely! I’ll try to name as many as I can; @engymahdy, @s.o.n.y.a.official, @ryatmiri, @parvbar & @chantalbrocca. The list could definitely go on & on, but these are probably the top 5.
In the fashion and beauty scene, a lot of people end up looking and acting the same - almost like clones. How do you manage to stay true to your vision and not get lost in a trend?
I try not to focus on what’s in trend, even though at times it is quite hard, but I do buy and put on only the pieces that make me feel comfortable and most ME.
Should we expect a marriage of your platform and photography in the coming future? What can we look forward to in both your fields?
The marriage between my platform and photography been existing since it’s beginning. All the photoshoots you’ve seen so far were shot, styled and directed by me. But I’ll definitely be working with a lot of female photographers, MUA & stylists in the future!
Finally, what's your favourite type of cake?
Definitely a cheesecake! Any and every flavor of cheesecake!
keep up-to-date with Tamila on Instagram @kochkarovatamila and join the 'no boys allowed' family @noboysallowed.ae
