If your mind-set is like most, when something breaks, especially leather shoes, purse or belt, you instinctively pick it up and look for the garbage can. However, when something fits, feels and looks good, we hate to just toss it away. It’s like parting with a dear and faithful friend. And why not? This is the age of replace, not repair after all. So it’s natural we’re leery of things that don’t ‘work’ and we don’t have the patience to fool with. But when we do need to fix our prized stuff, we know where to go- The Cinderella Shop. Yes, it’s been around for decades and is still sitting pretty at 929 Silverado St. It repairs and restores leather goods as close to their former glory as possible. Turns out you can keep your old friends. The shop’s owner, Torin Mincin, has been working over a workbench in the shop with more equipment and tools than anyone can name. His father, Renato, acquired the store in 1987 and he began working with his father and learning leather craft when he was 14 years old.
Torin said John Wayne used to drop in to get his boots repaired while he went next door to enjoy a chocolate shake. He said that John Wayne was, in fact, the same in person as he was on the screen, “friendly and likable.” Just like the store is. When I first saw the quaint little shop, I was reminded of the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale, the one about the shoemaker and the two elves. In this age, of course, elves don’t come in the quiet of the night to make shoes. But, the busy elves at the Cinderella Shop, Maria and Fernando, do come to work early in the mornings when the shop opens. And they have the same skills as the little elves and the same dedication to service and quality. Their goal is to make sure the customers are once again happy with the “old friends” they place on the counter with a resigned look and ask, “Can you fix this?”
And the shop’s “elves” say “Of course.”
Maria shines each shoe that comes into the shop with the caress of an artist. And when Fernando picks up anything leather that needs repair, he only sends it back when he knows the customer will look at it with satisfaction.
Maria and Fernando have been with Torin for years. They enjoy “fixing” the leather things that people have grown to love and enjoy. The satisfied looks on their faces tell their story. “We put the smiles back on the shoes.”
And that, Torin says, puts the smiles on the faces of their customers. “People bring them in old and we send ‘em out new. We save cows,” he said.
Torin also knows about Gucci, Prada, Coach and yes, throw in them Birkenstocks, among others. You’ll see all those popular names and more if you look at the shop’s shelves.
He’s been touching and feeling leather since his father acquired the shop. so you can bet he knows what’s good and what’s bad, what’s worth fixing and what isn’t. All you have to do is ask.
He said, “I’ve loved working with leather since my Dad first handed me a pair of shoes to repair. Each piece of leather has its own personality.”
Speaking of personality, when you walk into the shop, you get a little extra to brighten your day. You are greeted by a classical presentation of one of the great composers. It could be any one of the greats, Vivaldi, Bizet, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Mendelson, Saint-Saëns or many other artists and musicians, depending on what was playing in Torin’s thoughts when he awoke that day. His reverence of beautiful music is only matched by his reverence of the timeless quality of the leather he and his staff touch each day.
“It never gets old,” he smiled.
Unlike the classics, leather does have an end to its useful life, but as long as Torin and his elves, Maria and Fernando, can do anything about it, they’ll send the “old friends” back to their owners, renewed, and ready to be enjoyed one more time.
How about this for a plan? Drop off your shoes at the Cinderella Shop for a re-do and if you have the time, relax with a Cappuccino or espresso at a coffee house while you wait. That’s life in the Village!