Cobbler keeps small business going in 81st year

This photo, from the 1980s, was provided to the
Gazette by John Taylor, left, with his father, Haskell.

Sandy Wells writes a compelling story for the Charleston Gazette about a family-owned and operated shoe business that has survived 81 years in the 13,000-population town of South Charleston, W.Va. Opened in 1932, Taylor Brothers Shoe Repair is now run by 64-year-old John Taylor, one of the sons of the original owners. John "labors in a windowless back room on the same equipment used by the family founders. A stitching machine purchased in the 1960s is the newest concession to modern technology," Wells writes.

"I watched them repair shoes for years," Taylor said of his family. "I was around 20 when my dad allowed me to work on women's shoes. I had to strip the rubber heels first and set them up. My brother did all the finish work. I was only allowed to strip them and level them. The next thing was putting heels on women's shoes. I did that for years."

After being discharged from Vietnam, John  said I "wasn't sure what I wanted to be, but it wasn't a shoe repairman," Wells writes. "I did not think I would continue. But out of the military, I came to the shop. They still had me setting up women's heels. It was nothing to handle 60 pairs a day. I did finishing on the other end, dying, inking and buffing to make the shoes look pretty, both men's and women's shoes.

After his dad and uncle died, John said, "I gave myself a crash course in shoe repair. It was do it and survive or go broke or find another job. I was too old for another job," Wells writes. As far as how long he wants to remain in the family business, John says, "I'll be here until I die or they take me away." (Read more)