Sneakers ER

[GLENGRAVING]

I'm not involved in the shoe repair side of this industry so forgive me if I'm telling my grannie to suck eggs here, but I noticed a trainer cleaning service store in town that looks to be doing well, makes an interesting case study.  

instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sneakerlaundryglasgow/

website: https://www.sneakerser.com/ ('price list' and 'about us' pages worth a look) 

I'm just expressing my surprise that there's so much money in scrubbing (and gluing and painting) trainers. This company seems to have moved from a small workshop in the centre of Glasgow, to a ridiculously large two-storey unit in the city centre. Complete with a cafe and 'exhibition space'. 
So what gives - and how can others in the industry replicate it? Clearly there's a market for it as millenials prize their trainers over smart shoes. I know from reading Cutting Edge that reviving trainers (using Nanex®™) is a good earner for many of you, but judging from this case the right branding/social-marketing can tap into a larger market. The key seems to be about knowing your Yeezys from your Jordans - plus trendy interior design, an active and slick instagram account, and tattoo-bearded hipsters for staff. Neon signs, tiny coffees, barbers chairs etc. 

Is this a hype fad that'll die out, or should every cobbler go hire themselves a 'sneaker' aficionado with an instagram following? 

Edited July 4, 2019 by GLENGRAVING

[Count Muppet]

I was surprised to see this kind of work going on.

i first noticed a company near St. Helens I think,  a couple of months ago doing it and they do some really amazing work.

no idea what they charge though. Suppose it’s different for every job.

i always thought of trainers as throw away but I suppose if you’re spending £100 upwards on a pair it’s worth getting done

[Mike at Vauxhall]

Guess it's a generational thing. I'm sure like a lot of you, to me trainers are just an fairly inexpensive comfortable shoe, with a separate,  cheapish, pair for football. To my teenagers they most definitely aren't.

[GLENGRAVING]

7 hours ago, Count Muppet said:

i always thought of trainers as throw away but I suppose if you’re spending £100 upwards on a pair it’s worth getting done

It's more about a status symbol than practical footwear I guess. 

The same way one might think that watch collectors have more money than sense, if you don't 'get' this enthusiasm for trainers/'streetwear' it'll be hard to capitalise on it. 

 

Personally, I abuse my £30-£60 trainers until they got holes in them and throw them out 

Edited July 4, 2019 by GLENGRAVING

[grahamparker]

This service will do well in a big City but in our town 90% of trainers we see are fake knock offs that fall apart after a few months.

[MarkD]

Did it work out for Timpsons?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip4W633shhM

[Count Muppet]

Not that I know of. The machines are still there as far as I know. You occasionally see photos that someone has took of the cleaning being done but they aren’t up to the standards shown by the dedicated cleaning companies.

suppose that’s mostly the same on all areas of the company though

[GLENGRAVING]

58 minutes ago, MarkD said:

Did it work out for Timpsons?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip4W633shhM

I've never seen that advertised to be fair 

Timpsons are good at keeping their existing customers, but 'Sneaker ER' are successfully reaching out to a different demographic. I'm assuming it's successful anyway - maybe most of what goes through their tills is selling shoe-care accessories and doughnuts. 

[petercoulson]

The machines in the video are Chinese and take up a lot of room so, Angelo is very good with trainers and it's something that so far hasn't taken off here. In Europe and the States it's big business at the moment using steam cleaners with some cleaning fluid, they are great at reviving and cleaning but not so good at stain removal although most of the time it's people who want their trainers reviving.

[Tom D]

ive seen that video  and  am I alone in thinking   the noise hes making sounds bloody scary, plus I was waiting for  it to get wrapped around the brush

[mathews]

A hard brush, good old fashion elbow grease, soap and water to rinse is all you need. There is not much need to purchase a machine to do this job unless you are lazy and really want a shaft rotating a hard nylon brush for you or fancy the dryer to speed up the drying process. 

The only thing that interests me is the chemicals that may be better used in the place of soap which is all I have used in the past and any specific paints and renovating products that can be used afterwards. 

Does anyone know a wholesaler who sells these products?

[GLENGRAVING]

2 hours ago, mathews said:

The only thing that interests me is the chemicals that may be better used in the place of soap which is all I have used in the past and any specific paints and renovating products that can be used afterwards. 

Does anyone know a wholesaler who sells these products?

Well, on the site i linked in the first post, they sell their own branded cleaning products and paint pens and mention wholesale. I'm guessing even the wholesale price would be a bit steep though, surely there's a non-hipster-microbrand alternative. 

Edited July 5, 2019 by GLENGRAVING