Last year, women purchased 728.8 million pairs of shoes in the U.S., and men purchased 327.4 million pairs, according to market research company NPD Group.
Even with all that footwear out there, shoe-repair shops are becoming increasingly rare. The Wall Street Journal reports that stepping up are a number of online cobblers, who accept and return footwear by mail.
There are just 7,000 shoe-repair businesses left in the U.S. today, down from more than 120,000 during the 1930s, according to the Shoe Service Institute of America, a trade group.
Many cobblers now have Web sites where consumers can select from a wide range of services–from basic repairs to major refurbishments–and place orders, complete with printable prepaid postage labels. A few even offer to send shipping materials to consumers.
Photo by WSJ.