Can Online Shoe Repair Save My Sole?

Men have a completely different relationship with their shoes than women do. Women become rapturous when discussing their many pairs of shoes. They relish the opportunity for an afternoon of shoe shopping. They have selected just the right shoe for every life event imaginable: eveningwear, afternoon teas, tennis, girl's night out, brunch, the list goes on forever. Women celebrate a new pair of shoes as men celebrate a victory by the local sports team. A women's closet floor is a community of shoes, all posed for the next social outing.

Men reluctantly admit they have feet and require shoes. We don't like buying shoes and we never will. Most men have only two pairs of shoes for work and perhaps a pair of boots or athletic shoes for the weekend. We never, ever, think about how our shoes look, if they're comfortable we like them.

However, the biggest difference in how men and women view our shoes is a man's satisfaction with how long he's worn a pair of shoes. A woman has never pointed with pride to a raggedy pair of boots and boasted, "I've had these boots for more than twenty years, I bet I can get ten more years out of them!"

My closet floor is a veteran's home for shoes. Collectively, their age far exceeds mine. They're old friends who've been with me through life's sunshine and storms. Usually, I take them to a local shoe repair place in the city for maintenance. I was surprised recently that my old repair shop had closed and the yellow pages only listed a few alternatives, all 20 miles or so from where I live. In a burst of inspiration, I thought of the Internet. A search for "online shoe repair" brought up a list of options from Georgia, New York, and California.

Like a parent sending his child off to summer camp, I called the shops that had phone numbers listed and told them about my shoes and the repairs needed. It was pretty simple, just insoles, but I wanted to get a feel for how responsibly they would treat my foot-partner.

They all seemed worthy, but I selected a shop in New York City, Dino's Shoe Repair. The woman who answered the phone at Dino's was very reassuring and seemed to take a maternally professional interest in my shoes. The rates are very surprisingly competitive, although postage does skew the price upward.

I boxed the shoes up and sent them on their way. About a week later they returned, freshly renewed, and ready for another decade of service.