A small shoe repair shop in the East of England has become a favorite of British celebrities and sports stars who need to fix their fancy sneakers, boots and flats.
Based in Boston, Lincolnshire, Show Lab started in January 2020 as a local shoemaker cleaning Adidas Gazelles for £10 ($12 USD). It is now a UK-wide service that repairs hundreds of pairs of Gucci, Balenciaga and Louis Vuitton shoes every week.
ShoeLab’s success stems from addictively satisfying videos featuring the shoe repair process. £5,000 ($5,132) Christian Dior SE and £900 ($923) Christian Louboutin SAS to her 50,000 Instagram followers. almost every day, The store revives faded Balenciaga logos and tattered Gucci tennis shoes, drawing praise from celebrities including singer Kerry Katona, Love Island star Joe Garratt and England cricket captain Ben Stokes, as well as style and fitness influencers with millions of followers.
The work requires high skills and hard. Chief illustrator Andrea Pacheco, who also works on Show Lab’s Instagram videos, says she could spend 20 minutes fixing one Alexander McQueen logo.
The founders of ShoeLab operate on the belief that many major luxury shoe brands don’t care about making their shoes last, which created an opportunity for a repair shop.. Co-founder Luke Goodyear, 30, says he’d never buy a pair of sneakers from Axel Arigato (he says they’re falling apart) or Burberry Group PLC, whose ink tends to flow.
“The Louboutins sneakers stand out all the time,” says co-founder Kee Overton. “Someone texted last week saying 25 mutations have fallen off,” all from one pair. That’s about a quarter of the 100 bumps that come on new shoes.
Although people pay £1,000 to buy shoes, like these Diors, the dye can work on them,” adds Darren Overton, 55, a business partner and Kee’s father. “You would think if you paid £1,000, you wouldn’t run out. The ink.” (Representatives of Burberry, Christian Dior, Christian Louboutin and Axel Arigato did not respond to requests for comment.)
Shoe Lab owners have found that the best repeat business comes from Louboutin owners. Customers across town wear it “once, and the red is gone,” Kye says. Others, he adds, “will save all year to get it, so they’ll ask for a red protective film on the bottom.” A distinctive sole is of paramount importance. “You will never see a girl on social media wearing Louboutin standing still. Everyone will do it,” he says, raising his leg to show the back of the shoe.
Some customers send dozens of pairs of shoes at one time for repair. A lot of the shoes are loved, used and well-worn (a £5,000 pair of Dior sneakers were fixed after being damaged while skiing), but a lot of the work comes from fixing shoddy repair work by other companies or design errors by clients.
Spike owners often try to re-glue them with large drops of store-bought super glue, which inevitably leads to discoloration and discoloration of the finish. “It happens all the time,” Key notes. Putting shoes in the washing machine is also important and a shoe tester opportunity. “It totally spoils suede,” says Key, referring to the material’s tag when it’s hygienic: “We’ll clean it again so you can see your fingers wash it again.” New.
Goodyear is particularly excited about the prospect of people wearing his sneakers at muddy music festivals and the resulting demand for his services. But he knows ShoesLab’s customers mostly commute on Kings Road, not through Tough Mudder.
The team is baffled by how quickly the company is growing and the sheer number of shoes they repair each day, about 50 pairs or more. Key, who describes himself as a “shoe junkie”, says he has £35,000 worth of shoes and shelves built around his bed designed to display. “The world has gone crazy. Kids these days want Alexander McQueens for Christmas.” And when it breaks, Shoe Lab will be there to fix it.
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