[Spareribs]

Back in the old days, people did not wear sneakers. They wore leather shoes or boots. If your shoes were starting to wear out, you took them down the street to the happy shoe repair man and he would recondition them to make them look almost new again. There were even shoe repair men who could actually make shoes too at his shop so if there was a particular type of shoe you wanted, he probably could make it.

These days shoe repair men are rare. The ones I have seen are these old men who are foreigners from the old country. I have never met an American kid or college age student who is dreaming to become a shoe repair man. It would kind of be like dreaming of becoming a tailor which is another job that has declined from the days of horse and buggy.

It's not the most glamorous job nor is it the type of job you would say to impress the modern woman but to me, it's a great skill. I like high quality leather shoes and keeping them in good shape is important.

Shoe repair will never really go away because there is still a demand for this skill with high end shoes but these men are not as common as they once were. Therefore, these guys are special and unique.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

It's not about it being unglamorous or anything, but it come with the decline of real leather shoes. Paint-tossing PETA bleeding hearts, mass production, and better materials for other uses and properties other than cost all contribute to that. People don't want to learn to repair shoes because it's not a lucrative market because few people wear real leather nowadays, not because it's unglamorous. College kids for example don't want to learn how to repair shoes simply because they went to college, but because they themselves don't wear real leather either, meaning it doesn't play a part in their lives. Unless these kids are in Harvard or something with the prospect of working on Wall St or DC or whatever, they're more likely to toss paint at somebody wearing a fur coat than wear leather. You don't need to look far - how many threads here are about looking for Vegan earpads and headband pads?

 

Add to that why they're into sneakers in the first place - they're more comfortable and easier to clean. They have breathable materials that let some air pass through to vent their feet, the soles are softer if not segmented like on some running shoes in order to move with the joints better (the same way that Roman armor is called "Lorica Segmentata"), they can be tossed into a washing machine or otherwise soaked in soap water then dried as opposed to sitting down and working on them to get their shine, something you don't have time for if you're working and studying. Add to that how rapid one must move between locations, and a nice leather shoe isn't exactly the best for sprinting or biking from one spot to another. The only reason soldiers wear leather is precisely because it isn't breathable, and the risk of hot feet itchy from sweat and maybe getting athlete's foot isn't as bad as being perpetually wet and get trenchfoot or having ice melt and then seep through until toes start falling off.

 

However, go to a place where people still wear real leather, and you'll find leather repair people. I'm sure in Manhattan and DC there are people who can repair $1,000 leather shoes for $50; similarly there would be people like that who work on cowboy boots all over Texas. Ditto Buenos Aires (where much of the leather used in Italy comes from to begin with). In Metro Manila for example there are still a lot of shoe repair stores, and not just the ones in Ayala's and also Tantoco's malls where they have Italian leather goods hanging all over the place - in some alleys there are still people who work on real leather. As much as the local industry looks like it's dying the fact that there are still local leather shoe repair men means that there are still real leather shoes being sold. I'm in a suburb north of Manila, a seaport town, and far from where the horse and cattle farms are, and yet just three blocks from my house there's a leather goods store that sells locally made cowboy boots and loafers. Guess what nobody buys - the cowboy boots. As much as we deal with monsoon rain the reality is that people wouldn't lug them around vs a plastic-based rain boot that collapses/folds easily and nobody would cry over if they start tearing, vs getting $100 cowboy boots and then they lose their shape because they got mashed into a bag.

 

Compare that for example to the West coast vis a vis NY and DC. Look at how they are dressed going to work. Google and Apple don't require people to look like they work in Wall St, Capitol Hill, the Pentagon, etc, so if you're a leather repair guy the larget potential market in LA for example would be celebs. Still, those people make millions every few hours - they would toss out a busted shoe and still have a closet full of other stuff, not to mention they shop all the time instead of buying just when they need a new one.

 

[SomeWiseGuy]

In Singapore, public cobblers (people who repair shoes) are getting rarer.
They will reside in wet markets or hawker centers (food centers).
Sad to say, they are usually old men.
 
Nowadays, the only cobblers you can find are in shopping malls.
These shops are where you go to to repair or replace the soles of your shoes.
They may also provide a key duplication service.

 

[whoever]

They will come back, with the declining economy they will, just as I see now knife sharpeners ringing a bell in the street with their little wagon and stuff. I actually like it a lot...and in Paris it brings something so old back to life, it's glorious !

 

[Spareribs]

It's a similar thing in America too. Cobblers are usually found in some malls. I've seen them in other places too. The old man cobbler has rare talent.

 

[voxie]

Just came across this thread. When i first started my career my Father said... "Paul, always wear a really good pair of leather shoes, whats the point in wearing a tailored suit and ruin it with a pair of rubber soles" You can know the man in what shoes he wears. I love going to the cobbler and getting them re-soled and heeled. To this day when i meet a client i automatically have a quick glance in what they are wearing. 

 

[Spareribs]

With many years of experience, he is a master of his craft.

 

[Sal1950]

With many years of experience, he is a master of his craft.

 

That is so true, but I find it strange that both the words cobblers and shoemaker have come to have a negative condemnation for describing a person that works with his hands or the quality of his workmanship.
As in, "he just cobbled it together"  or "he's a real shoemaker"
Nothing could be further from the truth.
 
When I was young there was a shoemaker every few blocks on the main streets of Chicago,  In fact no longer than about 10-15 years  back there were 2 with in walking distance from my house until both men either died or retired, I remember them as being in their 80s then, of the generation that just worked till you couldn't any more. Great old Italian neighborhood store owners, nice friendly people.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sal1950 /img/forum/go_quote.gif

That is so true, but I find it strange that both the words cobblers and shoemaker have come to have a negative condemnation for describing a person that works with his hands or the quality of his workmanship.

As in, "he just cobbled it together"  or "he's a real shoemaker"

Nothing could be further from the truth.

 

When I was young there was a shoemaker every few blocks on the main streets of Chicago,  In fact no longer than about 10-15 years  back there were 2 with in walking distance from my house until both men either died or retired, I remember them as being in their 80s then, of the generation that just worked till you couldn't any more. Great old Italian neighborhood store owners, nice friendly people.

 

Within the social milieu I've been in we don't use such phrases, and if we "look down" on those who work with their hands, it's generally about their skill and what they're deemed worthy to work on rather than just working with their hands per se. For example an older guy who can be trusted to resole some dad's four-figure price shoe is always treated with a lot more respect than for example the guy who has to double up as a locksmith because there isn't enough business for him. Same thing with the custom cobbler downtown whose shop has a custom tailor vs a guy who works in a factory earning minimum wage. I'm not saying it's totally right to be a jerk to one kind of person, because we aren't, it's just that we do exalt some people when they have exceptional skill.

 

It's not that uncommon also - think of how much more people on another forum would be familiar with the name of the guys who assemble Aston Martin engine blocks (since the car comes with a plate with their signature etched on it) vs the people who assembles, well, practically any mass produced engine.

 

In any case, back to shoes - if any of you ever find yourselves in Metro Manila, particularly the business district of Makati City, drop by these places for awesome shoes. These are just two that work on shoes - some also work on suits or share space/rent space next to a tailor, who can do suits of any style including the "traditional" Filipino suits, and also Chinese Communist Party-style collars) - name it and if they can get the fabric they can do it (think of it like Hong Kong except these places aren't known for churning out suits much less shoes within 24hours).

 

http://www.besashoes.com.ph/madetoorder.htm

http://bespokemanblog.com/sapatero-manila-bespoke-shoes-part-1-measurements-design-last-leather/

 

For suits I actually just go to practically any tailor. There was one near my university who can really do it bespoke, ie, from scratch (instead of customizing the fit on a mass-produced suit). Coat with lining plus pants run from around $120 for more basic wool, but the nicer places of course have access to the same kind of fabrics that one can get if they had the suit made in Milan.

 

[Sal1950]

 

 

 For example an older guy who can be trusted to resole some dad's four-figure price shoe

Four figure shoes?  I've haven't spent four figures on shoes in 30 years all put together. 

 

[ProtegeManiac]

  Four figure shoes?  I've haven't spent four figures on shoes in 30 years all put together. 

 
Cowboy boots can go for around $700, and those aren't even bespoke Crocodile leather.