I’m Malith (Mal). With over ten years of experience in footwear industry, I bring not only technical expertise but also a perspective shaped by a lifetime of seeing the world differently; a quality I believe is essential to pushing the boundaries of what footwear can be. My perspective was formed by an upbringing that was anything but ordinary. As a first-generation Sri Lankan, I grew up between cultures, languages, and ways of seeing the world; absorbing experiences that most people never encounter and developing a foresight that comes only from standing at the intersection of different realities. That cultural duality taught me to read environments, behaviours, and needs with nuance, and to translate those observations into my design work. It allowed me to think outside of the box. Given my immediate environment was different, I often felt like I didn’t fit in. I saw things differently because I had seen different things, thus providing a viewpoint that differentiates myself and allows me to create, adapt, evolve, and implement fresh perspectives to everything that comes my way.