Shoe Repairs - Amazing Money This Way

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There's no doubt that few people would ever think of running a
shoe repair business from home, but Andrew Bewes is one who did,
and he is making a whale of a success of it.

Although Andrew's father had been in the shoe repair business all
his life, Andrew hadn't actually learned the trade from him, as
his father passed away when he was still in his early teens.

Andrew's mother, unable to sell the business, simply had her
husband's tools and equipment brought home and stored in the
cellar.

As this was the early eighties, Andrew found it impossible to find
a job. However, he was not one to be easily discouraged.

If only he had sufficient finances to re-open his father's
business, he was sure he could make a go of it, but the expense of
that was prohibitive when all he had was his 'dole' to get him
started.

One day while he was discussing the situation with his mother, she
suggested he set up his fathers equipment right in the cellar
where it was stored and start a business from there.

But how could he get people to bring their shoe repair work to his
home, when it might be much more convenient to take it to an
established shop?

At first it seemed impossible, but finally he felt sure he had
found a way. He would set up a number of locations where people
could leave their shoes for him to pick up and bring home to be
repaired.

He decided that dry cleaning stores would be the most logical and
convenient places, and made up his mind to try out his plan.

He had a dozen signs made up on heavy art paper board which read
"Leave Your Shoe Repair Work Here. Save Time - Save Money".

He typed up a complete price list to accompany each sign.

Thus armed, he called upon a number of dry-cleaners and offered to
pay them a 20% commission on all the work he received from them if
they would display his sign and take in the shoes.

He agreed to pick up the work twice a week, and shoes picked up on
the trip would be returned the next week.

Things were slow at first, but within a year, Andrew was serving
more than a dozen dry-cleaners and had enough business to justify
training another man to help him.

Although you probably don't have the equipment yourself, most of
the items necessary (soles, nails, glue, etc) can be bought 'as
required', and there are plenty of companies all over Britain who
will happily rent you the other equipment for between œ5 and œ45 a
week as your business grows.

Ask your newsagent to get you a copy of 'Boot and Shoemaker' - it
costs only about a pound an issue.