Former Westminster Warrior and Bristol Flyer Mostapha Alfaki has taken his passions of coffee and fashion to another level with the opening of his new store Kicks Cafe. Seeing players, both former or current diverse their fields of interest and income is always a great thing to see however, Alfaki has blown all expectations out of the water in such short time with Kicks Cafe.
Kicks Cafe is a unique concept that merges vintage clothing and specialist coffee. The concept of Kicks Cafe comes at the right time with the current climate of culture being mainly influenced by vintage fashion and the everyday coffee lover, alongside such a great concept the location of Kicks Cafe is at the heart of Portobello which is a melting pot of fashion here in London. Alfaki and his brother birthed the idea of Kicks Cafe together as a duo, using their experiences growing up in Portobello to help bring their business dreams to life.
"Growing up in the infamous Portobello area, you naturally develop a love for fashion influenced by the markets. Myself and my brother, who is also my business partner, have always dreamt to open a business together and more specifically something within the community we grew up in. With lots of planning and hardwork this has come to fruition now and kicks Cafe is becoming a hub within the area"
Most famously known for his time with the Westminster Warriors during their historical 2009/10 season and being apart of their star-studded U18 roster. Alfaki has noted that his time with the game at an elite level has help form his work rate, personality and focus that spills into everything in his life. Mostapha credits basketball as one of the main reasons as to why he has been able to successful open and run Kicks Cafe.
"Basketball has influenced me in many ways throughout my life. As well as networking and meeting individuals from all over the world, It has also taught me discipline, perseverance, sacrifice and leadership skills to name a few. This has shaped my personality into who I am today and it was easy to translate those traits into opening and operating a business"
Despite only being open for just over four months, Kicks Cafe has seen a lot of success both financial and commercial. The Alfaki brothers have grown the store into a mainstay and main attraction in the heart of the Portobello market (which is no easy feat when considering their location). Kicks Cafe has also had prestigious artists, influencers, fashion designers and models all visit the store because of their great products and their genius concept. Most notably Tyler the Creator and Chunkz alongside the rest of the Beta squad have all been at Kicks Cafe & have had nothing but the highest of praise for the Alfaki brothers' business!
"My message to the youth of today is that basketball has really saved my life. It has kept me off the streets and has given structure and routine to my life that was productive. It has also naturally given me the important traits I mentioned above that have helped me become an entrepreneur"
We often see players leave the game and not know where to go or what do to with their life, Mostapha Alfaki is a prime example that there is life after basketball and it can be more successful than you'd ever imagined, he was one the best shooters in the country both in the U18s and the mens level and is now killing it as a businessman. He's only been an entrepreneur for a short time but credits his success and work patterns to the game of basketball, so that means any hooper could do the same , just hone in on you passions and use some brain power.
We've often hear the expression be like Mike, well you can also be like Mostapha.