The Next Generation of Shoe Cobblers Isn't Repairing Boots "When you think about shoe cobblers, the image that comes to mind likely involves a multi-generational shop run by an old-timer hunched over a pair of brogues. For the most part, you'd be totally right. It's the shop most people expect to walk into when they look to hand over their Goodyear-welted boots for a new sole." "But that image has been fading because the humble craft has been on the decline for decades. A century ago, shoe repair shops numbered over 100,000. Today, there are less than 4,000." "The reason? Sneakers have dominated the shoe market. Just last year, Nike made $10 billion in shoe sales in North America alone. Sneakers are a hot commodity thanks to their comfort, style and affordability. Though sneakers are constantly pushing innovation and implementing new technology, they've put a major strain on the shoe repair industry. The same reasons that make sneakers popular are the very ones that hurt shoe cobblers. Unlike traditional shoes, sneakers aren't made to be resoled so much as they're made to be re-bought." (READ MORE)
"The Cobbler Bench is an accessory for the Tippmann Boss. Fashioned after the old stitching horses and cobbler benches of the 19th Century, the Cobbler Bench puts the Boss in a comfortable position for use. See more information here: http://www.tippmannindustrial.com/tip..." Tippmann Cobbler Bench
That Tippmann Boss leather sewing machine looks like a fun toy. But it costs $1000. There is a Chinese leather sewing machine for around $119 on Amazon. You would also need a bench for it. It gets decent reviews if you are mechanically inclined and willing to adjust a few things. Tempting.
The Cobbler by Anonymous Wandering up and down one day, I peeped into a window over the way; And putting his needle through and through, There sat a cobbler making a shoe: For the world he cares never the whisk of a broom — All he wants is elbow-room. Rap-a-tap-tap, tick-a-tack-too, That is the way he makes a shoe! Over laths of wood his bits of leather He stretches and fits, then sews together; He puts his wax ends through and through; And still as he stitches, his body goes too: For the world he cares never the whisk of a broom — All he wants is elbow-room. Rap-a-tap-tap, tick-a-tack-too, This is the way he makes a shoe! With his little sharp awl he makes a hole Right through the upper and through the sole; He puts in one peg, and he puts in two, And chuckles and laughs as he hammers them through: For the world he cares never the whisk of a broom — All he wants is elbow-room. Rap-a-tap-tap, tick-a-tack-too, This is the way to make a shoe!
The Transportive Power of the Cobbler’s Shop "There were the hiking boots I've had since high school, so battered that one Sunday, near the Delaware Water Gap, the rubber sole started to crumble off in chunks. There were the short brown riding boots, perforated like brogues, that remained beloved even with a gash worn through the leather at the heel. There were the teal-blue pumps with a decorative buckle on the toe, made by an upscale French designer and borrowed, without total permission, from a friend's sister, for a twenty-first birthday party. Those came home flecked with my roommate’s vomit, a peel of leather dangling from the toe." "I brought each pair to my cobbler, a cheerful Italian who roots for the Rangers and likes to share pictures of his son, now in grade school. Not all of them could be salvaged (that shred of leather couldn’t be reaffixed) but, for the most part, he takes my shabby, downtrodden shoes and returns them intact, supple, sturdy. He found a patch of leather to bandage that hole and ordered new Vibram soles for my hiking boots. That was six years ago. I plan on taking them to Idaho this summer." (READ MORE)
We still have a cobbler in our town. He and his wife inherited the shop from his dad and they keep up the tradition. They've performed miracles on my very old Weejun penny loafers more than once. A lost art.