Shoe Shops - not many available

[baileyuph]

Obviously the number of shops have decreased over years, in larger communities maybe one somewhere can be found.  How are they surviving?  Are they still operating like old school but diversifying to sustain the business?

Just a thought as I have noted the change in population of these type of business.  Specifically curious as to how the few shops left are surviving?

Doyle

[sofadoc]

Travelling upholstery salesmen have told me "In every small town, when the upholsterer dies.......no one takes his place".

I suspect the same can be said for shoe repair. We still have one in our town, and he's been here forever.

Are they diversifying to stay alive? Well, not this guy anyway. People are always coming into my shop with piddly stuff like belts, purses, satchels, gym bags, etc. I used to say "Why don't you try the shoe repair place?" They usually responded with "Already been there.......he sent me here".

I build the seats for a local industry that among other things, manufactures shoe shine stands. They claim to be the nation's largest maker of them. I build about 10 seats a year for them. 

As a kid, I got ONE new pair of shoes to start school every year. They had to last me until the spring.
Relatively speaking, shoes were WAY more expensive then, than they are now.

Nowadays, people are just looking for something to blow money on. They'd rather buy new shoes than get the old ones repaired. Does that mindset sound familiar?

[baileyuph]

Does this mindset sound famiar?,  sure does Dennis.  

I don't know if it is practicality or bad judgement on consumers but I had a good discussion just full of information about the situation in Asia (specifically China).  He and wife just returned from a two week tour over there, they reported that the population there is so big, labor is so much cheaper, much cheaper than automation like we strive for.  These conditions he described gave the bottom line, that China, for example, can do anything so cheap and the other world apparently wants cheap, is a big driver of what we buy today.

It was almost humorous how the customer described a restaurant operation in China, labor is so abundant, so cheap, they had three people doing nothing but supporting the requirement of cooking an egg.  One persons job was just;  cracking the egg.  Yes, three people were dedicated to the cooked egg objective.  He said there are so many people there, something like 85% ride bikes, transport on a one or two wheel cart heavy loads.  There are so many bikes (bicyles} that they have the right away over any auto traffic.  He said major intersections are a riot, but somehow the bikes get through and the few autos have to weave and do what is necessary to inch their way throught.  It is a different word, in most respects.  The couple also reported that the trip for two for two weeks was only $1500 at the point they stepped off the return plane.  This was food, everything, even tour guides at every point of interest and of course one to escourt the group.  Labor is incredibly cheap there because it is available.  People will work cheap and do, their social programs are nothing like ours that promote people just sitting/laying around at home watching whatever.

Regarding the economy there;  He/wife said China can build what the markets want, apparently they want cheap which supports throw away.Throw away quality is not good, usually, but it enables budgets to cover more bases.  Two cars, a boat, a golfing hobby, big screens, and all the other keyboard  input devices.  It has to be a matter of "values" and furniture and a lot of what we consume are low on the list, things that traditionally built and serviced with quality.

Yes, to the point, about an upholstery shop goes out, it usually isn't replaced.  If my business wasn't diversified, I just don't know if...........and you know what I mean.

Doyle

[crammage]

A few months ago I went to customers house to give a quote on some furniture pieces and we got to talking about shoes.  I was wearing a pair of Cole Haan loafers that are my favorite shoes but were in need of help or just thrown out, but since they are so comfortable and broken in just right I couldn't bear the thought.  I've had them for 10 years, wore them almost every day and tried to find another pair but couldn't.  Anyway, the customer mentioned to me that Cole Haan offers a restoration service, you go to their website and they will send you a package to ship the shoes into their service center in Houston, TX.  They have several different service levels, I went for the full restoration at $85.00, postage paid to and fro.  Considering these shoes typically run $150-200 a pair it was cheaper than buying new.  It takes about a month but when I got them back I was extremely pleased with how they looked like new but they still have that comfortable broken in feel.

It looks like Cole Haan has recognized a need for their customers that want to keep their shoes but need them refreshed, shall we say.  that's how companies stay in business by recognizing that there are needs that can be met and then figuring out how to do that.

They've found a loyal customer in me by proving this service that's for sure, because there's no local shoe repair place.
Clay

[Mike]

There are 2 shops in my town. I havnt. Een there or. NOticed activity there  

My father as a young man worked for a cobbler in malden mass.
The. In the navy be ran the shoe shop on the air  craft. Carrier he was on.
But when he got out he started painting with his brothernlaw

On a side note. He and his ship was in the tests a chored off the marshal islands for the atomic bond test i. 51.  Half his shipmates  died from cancer in later years.

[Dede]

There's a shoe repair shop in a neighboring city.  Tiny mess of a place, but they do excellent work (they re-soled hubby's favorite shoes).  Mail order accounts for more than half their business now, and they are crazy-busy.

Heck, why not mention them:  Keosa Shoe Repair

[jojo]

This is a trade I've always wanted to learn, but there is a dearth of information available. Amazon has a couple of books that were published in the 1900's.
There is a shop in my town, but the crusty old curmudgeon of an owner would never consider taking on an apprentice.

[bobbin]

I used to work in a shoe shop.  In the shipping dep't..  It sucked. I failed to identify myself when I answered the warehouse phone (no one  else did) and was called to the front office by the plant mg'r..  He yelled at me and called me an "uppity college -bitch" and I told him to apologize!  "You're TERMINATED!".   I didn't miss a beat, "is the ray gun set to stun or vaporize, SIR?". 

Funnily enough I got my first sewing job after that.  Alterations and repairs.  That shoe shop went out of business less than year later.  No wonder the mg'r. was such a cross person...

[Rich]

I was in to see a podiatrist the other day to look at a job and was surprised to see that he not only sells shoes there, but has a glass enclosed shoe repair shop right behind the receptionists desk. Pretty neat!
Rich