Hartland Shoes still going strong

Celebrating an old business in a new year

Article and photos by MARGIE O’LOUGHLIN

Welcome, 2016! Out with the old and in with the new! Well, maybe, unless you’re talking about a favorite pair of worn out Birkenstocks, as tried and true as an old friend.

Gene Hartsock estimates that he has handled upwards of a million pairs of shoes in his nearly five decades of repair work. He has been fixing or, more accurately, rebuilding shoes at 591 Hamline Ave. since 1992.

His interest in shoes started early. As a 15-year-old in Iowa City, Hartsock learned to sew leather on an industrial machine. He spent 5 ½ years learning the trade of shoe repair at a local shop. Eventually, Hartsock made his way to Minneapolis, intrigued by the high volume of repair work being done at Dayton’s Department Store. It was, he said, “a beehive of activity.”

All of the major department stores had their own shoe repair back then: Dayton’s, Donaldson’s, Penny’s, and Power’s, but Dayton’s was one foot ahead of the pack.

When Hartsock opened the doors at his current location in St. Paul, there were 45 shoe repair shops listed in the St. Paul Yellow Pages. That number has since dropped to eight. “Shoppers are becoming more environmentally conscious, and are buying better quality footwear,” Hartsock said, “but there are fewer qualified repair people to fix them.”

A sign in the shop says, “If the shoe fits, repair it,” and regular customers know that this doesn’t happen overnight. Shoe repair, like good cooking, is something that takes patience. Hartsock warns each customer that the expected wait time is between four and eight weeks and that, he said, “doesn’t go over so well with some folks.”

A survivor of two kidney transplants, Hartsock still works long days but said he isn’t as fast as he used to be. At 61, he’s realistic about what he can do—and believes the wait is worth it for customers who want to get the job done right.

Hartsock has established a reputation for himself, not just in the neighborhood but around the world. A believer in “niche creation,” he is widely recognized as an expert in restoring Birkenstock sandals, with boxes of shoes piled up from as far away as Ireland, Australia, and Singapore to prove it. Rebuilding Birkenstock foot beds, replacing broken cork, adding Vibram soles for better traction and durability – Hartsock does it all.

His other specialty market is making orthopedic lifts for all types of shoes, by adding height to the midsole. This modification makes it possible for customers with legs of different lengths to walk comfortably and evenly.

Hartsock’s reputation as a craftsman has reached even to Hollywood, of all places. For the 1995 filming of Grumpier Old Men (which took place in Minnesota), he was hired to apply non-slip surfaces to the bottoms of more than 60 pairs of shoes. Ann-Margret, Sophia Loren, Walter Matthau, Jack Lemmon, the rest of the cast and even the stunt doubles were reliably sure-footed on location in the snow.

While working for the film industry was novel, Hartsock is grounded in his Hamline-Midway neighborhood. Every October, he offers pink heels in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month with a percentage of sales going to benefit Region’s Hospital Breast Cancer Research Fund. No stranger to health issues with his ongoing kidney disease, he does what he can to help others.

And he certainly does what he can to promote the longevity of shoes worldwide. Go to the company website at www.hartlandshoes.us for step-by-step instructions on how to properly polish your shoes or boots. The website even offers a do-it-yourself guide to simple shoe repairs like re-gluing separated soles. Hartsock can sell you a handy, retail-sized tube of Barge contact cement to complete the job.

Stop by the shop to choose from a wide selection of leather lotions, shampoos, and balms. There are polishes in many colors, and racks of brushes, laces, heel guards, insoles and cedar shoe trees for optimal storage. The shoemaker said, “I use what I sell, and I sell what I use.”

Hartsock also stocks (or can custom order) Old Friends and Ciabatta’s sheepskin slippers and boots in several styles. They have a friendlier price tag than Uggs, and non-slippery bottoms.

In support of small business sustainability, all orders must be pre-paid. Major credit cards are accepted, and Hartsock gives a 5% discount for payment in cash. Contact him at gene@hartlandshoes.us or 651-646-4326.

It’s 2016. Embrace the new, like Hartland Shoes’ contrasting, colored soles and strident stiletto heels, but don’t forget to honor the old. Weatherproof your footwear often; once a season isn’t enough. Put a dab of black super glue on the tips of your favorite pointy-toed black shoes. And most importantly, plan ahead—bring your shoes and boots in for repair before it’s too late.