Last week I listened to a story about a small shoe repair shop as told by one of their long-time customers. It’s a heart-warming business story that I think you’ll enjoy. Blairsville Shoe Repair is located on Booger Hollow in the North Georgia mountain area. The sole proprietor is a cobbler at night - he holds down a delivery job during the day. His shoe repair business is built on a self-service model and depends on the honor system. Customers leave their shoes for repair in a converted newspaper vending machine located on his front porch. Shoes that are ready for pick-up as well as the money folder are also in the machine. Yes, the money folder - customers pick up their shoes and leave their payment, and in 25 years he has never come up short.
In the global economy we read plenty about earning the customer’s trust. However; you don’t see too much written about trusting the customer. Can you earn the customer’s trust without trusting the customer? Small businesses produce 52 percent of the U.S. GDP according to Hector V. Barreto (“The Engine of America”), the administrator of the Small Business Administration from 2001 to 2006. My guess is that there is still a fair amount of “Booger Hollow” style trust holding those relationships together.
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