Dubai isn’t a city one would associate with anything vintage, but amidst the futuristic zeitgeist, Egyptian resident Shadi Megallaa is pioneering the music industry in the city, one record at a time. His store The Flip Side, which opened in May 2017, currently caters to a crowd of purists and enthusiasts who otherwise wouldn't find vinyl anywhere else, having to resort to shipping them from other countries online at much higher prices. The walls of The Flip Side are filled with old Egyptian posters of classic musicians such as Abdel Halim Hafez, Um Kalthoum and other legendary artists from around the region. The shelves are abundant with a huge assortment of records brought in from across the world in all conceivable genres, whilst regular in-store gigs and a free zine go a long way to building the foundations of a vinyl community in the city. We take a look inside...

Follow The Flip Side on Facebook and Instagram.

The store is located at Unit 71, Alserkal Avenue in Dubai.