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Shoe repair stalls

Photos & text by
Irene Lam & Dionne Yuen

Dionne Yuen

A cobbler's stall is located at the ground floor of an old building where lighting is weak.

Irene Lam

Shoe repairman pierces a hole in the sole and pulls needle and thread through the hole to bind the shoe and the sole together.

Irene Lam
Glue is brushed evenly on the sole.

Technology does not make all crafts obsolete. Traditional shoe repair stalls still abound, mainly in Central, Wan Chai and Sheung Wan.

The shoe repairmen are normally the owners of these stalls. They sell heels, shoelaces and leather, as well as tools for working with leather like scissors and hammers. 

Mr. Wong Yun Keung, who has been working as a cobbler for 20 years, said, “White-collar workers, Filipino maids and foreigners are our main customers.

“They usually come to us because they have more confidence in our quality.”

While fixing a heel, three layers of glue are brushed on the sole to allow deep penetration into the leather and firm attachment of the heel.

In shoe repair shops that are part of chain stores, usually only one layer of glue is brushed on.

While manual work guarantees finer craftsmanship, Mr. Wong said that the monotonous and time-consuming nature of the job drives people away from joining the business.

Hence, the shoe repair profession is being taken over by major enterprises. It has developed into chain stores that rely more on mechanisation.

Modern shoe repair shops are located in shopping malls and railway stations. In such shops, the shoe repairmen wear neat, clean uniforms and bear a hospitable manner. Unlike traditional stalls, modern shoe repair shops are tidy, air-conditioned and well lighted.

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