The Smash Room is not just a place for fun, corporate team building or to blow off some steam – it is a therapeutic experience that has saved many lives, co-founder and CEO Ibrahim Abudyak told Arabian Business.
“I’m not exaggerating when I say we have saved lives. In the span of six years, we literally saved lives and I have seen it with my eyes. There are people who wanted to hurt themselves or hurt someone else and there were a lot of instances where we stayed open or reopened for someone to be there. I don’t think we talk about it enough, I don’t think people realise it.”
“That is why we started in the first place,” he said.
The Smash Room was launched in Dubai in 2018 by two individuals who, after experiencing personal struggles, met at a support group and built a connection into a business partnership.
“It was meant to be, it had to happen this way,” Abudyak said.
Now with several locations in the UAE including a Smash Mobile, the company eyes expansion propelled by the launch of its newest location – Smash Room City.
However, introducing the brand to the Dubai market was no easy feat. Abudyak detailed instances of judgement, negative comments and a lack of understanding of the concept that was that was unfamiliar to the city at the time.
“When we started we had a huge backlash in terms of perception, the hate comments we received was crazy,” he said.
The birth of destruction
The Smash Room’s concept is to provide a safe, controlled environment where people can release stress through the therapeutic act of breaking things. Customers can either bring their own ‘smashables’ or choose from a variety of items sold at the location.
But building this destruction-focused business required an ironically constructive approach.
The venture began as a partnership between Abudyak and Hiba Balfaqih, a psychologist by profession. While Balfaqih brought mental health expertise to the concept, Abudyak took on the operations, making the business his home during its early days.
“I spent nights sleeping there, actually. The first two years, I was there from the very start,” Abudyak recalled.
The start was “controversial” with both partners having to “jump on to every media to talk about it.”
He believes that a lot of the negative backlash came from a lack of consumer understanding of the concept which is now widely popularised all around the world.
Where do the broken items go?
As sustainability becomes a key concern for customers, two common questions arise: Where does The Smash Room source its items, and what happens to the broken pieces afterward?
Abudyak asserts that The Smash Room is actually saving the environment with its operations.
“We are actually helping the environment by smashing things,” Abudyak stated, explaining that he personally visits junkyards in Ajman and Sharjah to pick out items that are “piled somewhere in the environment.”
“The laptop might look good to you but it does not work and all the good parts have been taken out of it, the junkyard has already made money on it and it’s empty inside. It just looks good because we we make it look good, this is how we want to present it to people,” he explained.
The company has established partnerships with local recycling facilities, ensuring that different materials from glass and plastic to electronic waste are properly sorted and processed. Metal components are separated and sent to scrap dealers.
“Every year, we are responsible for at least 15,000 electronics recycled,” he said.
Smash Room City
The latest launch, Smash Room City, is a concept that Abudyak created for the purpose of “self expression” were he believes that people can go and “scream, break things physically and release stress.”
The new location has a concept laundry room, restaurant, supermarket and an office, which was one of the most requested concepts from customers.
“At the restaurant, we wanted people to be able to flip the table or a glass of wine … at the office which is obviously the biggest and most requested, I wanted to make sure that we have a water cooler for sure,” he explained.
Is breaking things an unhealthy method to relieve stress?
When asked if this was an unhealthy way of releasing stress and anger, Abudyak defended the concept.
“When somebody decides to become an athlete and they go to the gym once and they never go again, are they going to be an athlete? Do we call them an athlete now?”
He said, “The Smash Room is the opposite of teaching people violence. It is a space where you can channel the energy in a healthy and controlled way. Believe it or not, we have a lot of psychiatrists and psychologists who bring their clients to The Smash Room and even pay for their sessions in order for them to come and deal with their feelings and emotions.”
With a consistent growth in customers, he shared a striking statistic, revealing that majority of his customers (over 60 percent) are female.
Abudyak believes that this is a result of “toxic masculinity.”
“I realised that we as men have an issue expressing ourselves, this toxic masculinity culture, a man up culture that is just killing us,” he stated.
“Im not stereotyping,” he said, explaining that the statistic is backed by science and that it is much easier for “girls to express themselves versus boys.”
According to Abudyak, the highest someone has spent in the Smash Room was a whopping AED10,000. The items were exclusive KAWS dolls that retail anywhere from AED2,000 and up.
“It is normal for someone to spend AED2,000 at the Smash Room,” he said.
‘We are not a fast food chain’
Looking ahead, the owners have decided to take back control over the company which was initially expanded through a franchise model in Abu Dhabi. Abudyak intends to buy it back and operate it solely among both founders.
“We’re not a fast food chain, ” he said.
The Smash Room is on a path of further expansion, currently increasing its hiring efforts. Abudyak is exploring innovative digital avenues, including a new concept that combines digital gaming with the physical act of smashing items.
Plans for expansion into the Saudi market are also in the works.
For those who have not tried the Smash Room yet, Abudyak said, “It is an experience of a lifetime. It is something that you have to try at least once in your life. Think about it, from the fun element, the therapeutic element, the sports element, the charity element, the environment where also the recycling part, there are at least five different reasons for you to try it. You can make the most out of it by just eliminating all these prejudgments of yourself and this is why I think everybody should live genuine to themselves.”
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