Shoe repairer

Day to day, the shoe repairer works in a workshop. The repairer builds up or replaces soles and heels, swaps worn buckles and fastenings, restitches split seams using sewing techniques suited to leather, and cleans and polishes the finished pair. The repairer then applies footwear finishing techniques, trimming, dyeing and burnishing the edges. Where a part has to be made rather than bought, the repairer cuts shoe uppers and works through hand leather cutting processes, taking the grain and the stretch of the hide into account.

Before quoting, the repairer judges the quality of the footwear, decides whether the upper is worth a new sole at all, and provides customers with information on repairs: what can be done, what it will cost and how long the result will hold.

The repairer uses hand tools and specialised machines and maintains that equipment themselves, keeping blades sharp and finishing wheels in good condition. Formal requirements are set by national craft and trade rules.