by Monica Chamness
Staff Writer
It’s called Ragtime. For life-long shoe shiner Ralph Scott, it’s an art form, too. Scott has been working his magic on footwear at Bill’s Shoe & Luggage Repair for six years.
Ragtime is how he describes his method. He snaps his polishing rags to produce a musical beat while he shines shoes.
“You’ve got a lot of wannabe shiners they haven’t mastered the technique,” said Scott.
“They can’t do Ragtime and if they can’t do Ragtime, they’re amateurs.”
Scott honed his talent at the tender age of seven while working at a shop for a man he likens to a stepfather. Despite holding a bachelor’s degree in physical education/health science from New Mexico State University, he returned to “beating the brushes” after seven years of working for the State.
“I like doing this because I’m my own boss,” he said. “I like working for myself. I’m part of a profession of true shoe shiners. True shoe shiners start when they’re young and keep with it. It’s like playing the blues; either you can play it or you can’t. When you do it good, you have them bring them in by the armful.”
How many customers he sees each day varies widely. Some days he’ll shine 30 pairs, other days only two.
Prior to Bill’s Shoe Repair, Scott shined shoes in Texas. He has a different approach for each shoe whether it is golf, conditioned leather, black and white or white shoes.
“It’s a forgotten trade, almost a lost art,” he said. “There’s not a whole lot of guys doing it now. The oldtimers are too old or have passed on but it’s slowly coming back. Some women are getting into it now, too.”
Riley Cooper is another shine man that defines a by-gone era. He has been operating his independent stand in the concourse of the SunTrust building for seven years. He’s got a couple of chairs ideally positioned near other service vendors (a restaurant and barber shop).
“I’ve been shining shoes for 15 years,” said Cooper. “I started out in Dayton, Ohio. I’ve got two daughters that live here and they brought me down.”
Cooper tallies about 40 pairs a day. He learned the skill in the Navy in the 1940s. Formerly a bricklayer, Cooper reverted to shoe shining after he was hurt on the job and no longer able to climb a ladder.
“I asked them [the property owners] if they’d like a shoe shine parlor in the building and they said yes,” he recalled. “Business downtown is very fine. My clients are mostly people in the building — doctors, lawyers.”
Like his competitors, Cooper is optimistic above the future of the profession and has witnessed an increase in the number of patrons over the years.
Sporting the most chairs on the Northbank, Gus & Company on Laura Street employs a duo that have shined a whole generation of shoes downtown. John Ponder and Warren “Maestro” Robertson have been buffing and polishing dress shoes since they were teenagers.
“I’ve done a lot of other jobs, but I’ve been here about 30 years,” said Ponder. “I picked it up at other places and I’ve been doing it ever since. That’s my hobby. It’s what I like to do because I like to deal with people.”
Robertson, who has been at Gus & Company for 20 years, learned his style from the former owner of the shop, Sam Fleos.
“Sam named me Maestro because I could play a bad tune on a shoe,” said Robertson. “That is, I could put a nice shine on a shoe.”
Robertson blames a lack of parking and entertaining activities for the decline in foot traffic over the years.
“People don’t want to come down here because there’s nothing down here,” he said. “They’ve got the park [Hemming Plaza]. They should have something here every afternoon and on weekends.”
Robertson, though, plans on staying downtown.
“It’s an honest living,” he said. “Somebody’s got to do it.”