Today we’d like to introduce you to Travis Lyon.
Hi Travis, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I got started in footwear professionally in 2010. I grew up on a farm and had a tramatic ankle injury during highschool. That left me with a need for high quality footwear. I landed at the Red Wing shoe store in Holt, MI where after many years and pairs of boots Mike Repins offered me a job. I worked the retail side of footwear for 3 years while finishing a bachelors in business management. Upon completion of my degree the repair shop that worked with the red wing stores was selling or going out of business. We negotiated a price that was fair and in December 2013, I bought Charlotte Shoe Repair. Back then we were a one man shop that worked very closly with our local customer and a few red wing stores for their warranty work. With my connections in the red wing world we soon had numerous stores sending us work from 5 different states at one time. We now employ 4 cobblers and 3 retail staff to ensure our customers get the best experience they can!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Forever, our largest challenge is education.
When your car breaks down and you can’t get to work, there are 10 repair shops on your way back home to get your car fixed. You’re immersed in options and constantly reminded that you can fix your car instead of buying a new one. Shoe Repair, unfortunately, has been a declining industry since the 1960’s losing almost 20% of businesses a year. We are unseen and unheard, so the general population has forgotten that their most precious items can be fixed instead of replaced. Also, the type of footwear has changed dramatically, and there are fewer repair options for us, but we can still fix a lot of consumer items that people would normally discard.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
We offer a plethora of repair services.
We can do resoling, hardware, sewing, patching, and general alterations to work boots, cowboy boots, dress shoes, sneakers, hiking shoes, and orthopedic shoes.
We also sew canvas materials. Install grommets.
We also sell high-quality work boots and all necessary footwear accessories.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Keep a good team, and everything else is manageable. If your team is rocky, you’ll spend all of your energy on them instead of a great team spending all of its energy on the customer.
Pricing:
- Work Boot Resole $105
- Cowboy Boot Half Sole & Heels $80
- Dress Heels $35
- Sewing Starts at $12
Contact Info:
- Website: https://charlotteshoerepair.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charlotteshoerepair/
