Shopkeeper To Save Last Soles

By Stephanie Petrellese

Robert Cangemi in the Garden City Shoe Shoe Shop where he has been in business for 40 years. (Photo Credit: Althea Robinson)

As heavy rainfall from Tropical Storm Danny was beginning to make its way toward Long Island on Friday, Garden City resident Louis Patrickakos was focusing on making his way around several puddles that had begun to accumulate in the parking lot behind the stores on Seventh Street. During the navigation process, he also made a personal discovery: his shoes were in serious need of some polish.

A quick glance upward and Patrickakos realized he was in luck. Although it was past regular business hours, the light was still on at the Garden City Shoe Shop. He walked inside without a moment's hesitation.

Since his family had been customers for years, he was confident that the owner, Robert Cangemi, would be able to help even if he was preparing to close up the shop for the evening. Patrickakos knew he liked to go "above and beyond" for his customers.

He was correct. A few minutes later, after Cangemi determined the closest shade of brown to match the shoes, Patrickakos was on his way, a bottle of polish tucked neatly in his hand.

Patrickakos, along with all Garden City residents, were saddened to recently learn that the light will not remain on much longer at the Garden City Shoe Shop. After 40 years in business, Cangemi has decided to retire and close his shop on Sept. 30th.

"The Garden City Shoe Shop is currently the retail business operating for the longest period of time in the same location by the same owner," said Althea Robinson, executive director for the Garden City Chamber of Commerce. She said Cangemi and Betty, his wife of 54 years, have been invited as special guests of the Chamber to the group's season kick-off luncheon on Sept. 30th.

The decision to retire was not an easy one for Cangemi, 79, and he is quick to list a number of factors that came into play as he ultimately chose this year to close up shop for good. The shoemaking profession in general has become a lost art. Most people are not spending the money on buying quality-made shoes that require upkeep by a professional shoemaker.

"I like the people here. I enjoyed myself in Garden City," said Cangemi, who lives in Cedarhurst. "They're a great, great group of people. I'm not blaming the people for the business. It's the field."

Cangemi said most people have chosen to purchase less expensive, flimsily constructed, "throwaway shoes." When they get worn out, people now prefer to head to the mall or go online to purchase a new pair. Gone are the days when people would head to the local shoemaker to purchase shoes and have them personally fitted.

For those who do seek his services, Cangemi explains that the newer shoes require more work to fix since they are generally made of pressed paper, synthetic and composition materials, rather than leather. Obviously, since each repair takes more time, he does not make as much money. Combine this with the recent news Cangemi received that he was getting a new landlord and a rent increase, and it was enough to cement his decision to retire.

He gestures to the benches and chairs in the front of his shop. "Years ago, when I first came here, I could help four people at a time, two men, two women, sitting down," he said. Cangemi had up to three people working in the back of his shop; one solely focused on women's shoe repairs, one man concentrated on men's shoes, and another specialized in dyeing shoes. He would also have another employee, sometimes one of his daughters, in the front selling shoes. Cangemi fondly recalls how he would hand the shoes needing repair back to his longtime employee, Oscar Vasquez, who worked for him for 23 years.

Cangemi says the heels on women's shoes used to be made of wood. All he had to do was peel the rubber off and attach the new rubber. "You didn't have to sand it, you didn't have to glue it," he said. "You just nailed it and trimmed it."

Cangemi would have two women's heels, and two men's heels, completed in 10 minutes. "Today it takes 20 minutes to do one heel," he explains. Repairs on the heels of many shoes made today are much more labor intensive since they are hollow and constructed of plastic. "It's a whole new system now," he laments. Shoes are made on assembly lines, like cars. "That type of shoe, when you take it apart, is completely different than the old-fashioned one."

Cangemi learned the business from his father, Salvatore, who was a shoemaker in Italy. Salvatore eventually brought his skill to the United States during the 1930s and opened two shoe factories on Broadway in Manhattan, specializing in high-fashion women's shoes. His dad was very successful: Cangemi Shoes are now included in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Collection for original designs.

He reached to a shelf behind him and took down a pair of blue, high-heeled Cangemi shoes made in his father's factory 60 years ago, proudly showing the leather found on both the inside and outside. He said it's more important to have leather in the inner part of the shoe because of its strength. Paper and other synthetic materials start to lose their shape and collapse.

"As a finished shoemaker I get very discouraged looking at what they're getting away with because it cheapens it, and I see the materials that they're using, and the prices people are paying for these cheap materials...It shouldn't be that much money. They're overpriced, you pay for the name, and they're getting away with it and people are spending the money."

Although business has been declining for a while, Cangemi fondly reflects on the days when he would have to work in his shop until late in the evening to keep up with all of the work. At one time he had accounts with 15 department stores, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's and Abraham & Straus. He would charge the stores monthly for all of his shoe repairs. Meanwhile, many times he made lifelong customers when people brought in the shoes they recently purchased and saw his work.

He would also work for importers, who would send him up to 3,500 pairs of defective shoes to be repaired at one time. It was less expensive for the importer to have them repaired in the United States than have them shipped back to Europe.

This was in addition to the business he was getting from local residents. He has several longtime customers, and says that actress Susan Lucci and her husband, as well as author Nelson DeMille, have patronized his business. Local customers who eventually moved away, some as far as South Carolina, have continued to send their shoes back to him for repair.

Cangemi chuckles as he recalls over the years the variety of items besides shoes that people have brought in to his shop to be repaired. "People always think the shoemaker can do anything," he said. One peculiar item he saw was a canvas boat cover, which he had to turn away.

Regular customers who were familiar with his background also knew that he is handy and would seek his advice. Cangemi graduated from the prestigious Brooklyn Technical High School, where he developed an affinity for mechanical drawing. He graduated with a degree in aeronautical engineering, and dreamed of a career building and designing airplanes. Encouraged by his father, he also took a series of business administration courses, which would turn out to be helpful when he decided to open his own shoe shop.

During the Korean War he received training to teach soldiers how to maintain and repair mobile army equipment, including shoe repair machinery. The cost was not the only reason why the army wanted to repair boots rather than replace them: It was well-known that new boots caused painful blisters.

Bill Gay, a Garden City resident and longtime friend, often visited the shop. "I think the Village is losing a great merchant, an honest one who did quality work," he said. "He did a lot of favors for people for 40 years, too: no charge, two dollars, three dollars, a lot of no charge. He will be sorely missed around here, as people know. They already know that."

Before he left the shop, knowing it would be one of his last visits, Patrickakos shook his head sadly. "It's too bad," he said. "It's not only the shoes. It's what goes with the shoes, the service. My wife bought her shoes here, and so did I. My daughter used to drop all of her shoes off from the city whenever she was out here for the weekend."

Cangemi sighed and picked the keys off the counter to lock up the shop for the night. He looks forward to spending more time with his wife, three daughters and four grandchildren. However, the retirement also takes on a bittersweet quality when he reflects on the relationship he has developed with many of his customers. "We're friends, and I'll be missing them, too."