TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)– Sarge’s Shoe Repair will go out of business on September 30.
Brad Smith took over his father’s shoe repair store 28 years ago after retiring from the military.
He said the past 2 decades have been a journey.
“I’ve been doing this 28 years. It’s ran its course,” Smith said.
According to Smith the quality of shoes today isn’t the same as what they used to be and the lack of replacement for certain parts has made shoe repair difficult.
He said it wasn’t a hard decision for him to make when it came to closing his family business especially with COVID-19’s effect on the local economy.
He said he’s looking forward to his next chapter.
“It’s just another stage of life. You set a plan and stuff. My wife told me I could shut the shop down years ago if I wanted too. I said no I’m going to wait until you get done. We’ll both quit at the same time. Then we’ll go on with our life,” Smith noted.
Smith said he’ll miss his longtime customers and the friends he’s made along the way the most.
“I love to talk to people. I’ll talk to anybody. The last couple of weeks when the ads went in the paper and the signs go up during the day saying I’m closing; I’ve had a lot of customers come in and wish me well. So, it makes you feel good,” Smith said.
