Shop Local: David Shoe Repair

The shoe repair business has its seasons, Gregory Goldberg said – the high (in fall), the low (in summer), and the in-between, which is pretty much the rest of the year. But after nearly 15 years repairing shoes in downtown Cleveland, the Russian emigrant found that low season was lasting far too long.

“Cleveland was dying,” he said. It was time to relocate.

That’s how his shop, David Shoe Repair, came to be at 787 Bishop Road, near the corner of Wilson Mills Road, in Highland Heights. That was eight years ago.

“I’m closer to home,” Goldberg said with a smile, “and I’m doing much better than I was downtown.”

The business has weathered the recent recession reasonably well, possibly because customers often find it’s cheaper to repair than to replace.  He has but one complaint. “People buy lots of cheap shoes from China,” he said. “If they pay $40, they don’t bother with repairs. Maybe if the shoes cost $100, they will.”

Goldberg learned shoe repair 26 years ago during a one-month apprenticeship with a fellow emigrant. He learned quickly, he said, because he had a knack for it, much like he has the knack for fixing cars, plumbing and whatever else needs attention.

“I don’t like to sit still,” he said.