Meet the village cobbler
Shoelaces, insoles, dyes, adhesives and leather preservatives cover the walls of the Village Cobbler. Owner Sean Keklikyan sits behind the counter, hunched over a pair of scuffed suede boots. He has mended heels, fixed soles and repatched leather at the shop for more than 10 years since the shop’s founding over three decades ago.
Rows of boots, tennis shoes, heels and loafers line the shelves behind the counter. Smells of leather, metal and chemicals waft through the room. Hanging on the wall, a handmade wooden plaque reads “God Bless This Business” and a large sapphire evil eye stares at customers. There’s a used horseshoe, facing upward, symbolizing the invitation of good business.
Keklikyan has owned the Village Cobbler since he took it over from his retiring uncle in 2010, 10 years after immigrating to the United States from Armenia, carrying it over from the old village to USC Village, which was built by the University in 2017. Taking after his uncles, grandfathers and father, who were all shoemakers hailing from Yerevan, Armenia — the historic epicenter of leather manufacturing — Keklikyan hopes to continue the cultural tradition of shoemaking for years to come.
Keklikyan grew up watching his father work and would often help him resole, shine and repair shoes when he was a teenager. He remembers the cuts on his hands that would throb for weeks from his early mistakes with the knife and tools. During his childhood, almost every pair of his shoes was custom-made for him by his father. At 17, he once begged his father to make him cowboy boots, which were trendy at the time yet seemingly impossible to create.
“We bought the leather, all the models [and] created the cowboy boots,” Keklikyan said. “Honestly, it was killing my feet, but I didn’t care. The most important thing for the cowboy boots on the side was the stitching design … Everything was real leather — inside, outside, leather sole, double stitching.”
Preserving Tradition
Armenian tradition places historical and cultural significance on the art of shoemaking. Situated in the crossing of transit trade roads, Armenia was known for developing talented crafters, who created inner soles of shoes from oxen and bullocks and an outer layer of leather from cows.
Despite the deep-rooted tradition of shoemaking in Keklikyan’s family and home country, he didn’t always expect to become a cobbler. In his youth, Keklikyan played on the Armenian national volleyball team and originally thought he would become a coach someday.
However, Keklikyan stood on the shoulders of shoemaking giants. Strangers would often tell him about the shoemaking skills of his grandfathers. So the legacy followed him when he moved to Los Angeles, and he found himself helping his uncle.
“I guess I love shoes … When I see nice shoes, nice job, it’s like an art, like drawing a picture,” he said. “People love it … It’s in my blood.”
Keklikyan is adamant that, despite the abundance of do-it-yourself videos, professional assistance is required to properly repair leather. When Keklikyan doesn’t know how to fix something, he will call friends who are cobblers. Despite his expertise, it’s nevertheless difficult to completely renew customers’ items.
Recently, a customer brought in a 50-year-old vintage designer purse that she inherited from her mother. The purse was difficult to repair because the inside leather was deteriorating, making it nearly impossible to replicate its color and texture. Keklikyan explained that repairing the purse would change its authentic look and would be challenging, but not impossible. The customer later decided they didn’t want to lose its character.
“Honestly, it’s hard because sometimes they bring something like old purses, old shoes and they love their shoes,” he said. “They want to just keep them. You’ve got to do your best to satisfy the customer. It’s not going to be brand new, of course, but the condition is going to be much better.”
Sole Survivor
When USC opened the gates to USC Village in August 2017, it promised to expand housing, dining and other amenities for students. USC Village, which was the largest development in the school’s history, is home to big businesses such as Starbucks, Target and Trader Joe’s.
But before the upscale $700 million, 15-acre complex existed, there was another village; the old University Village, which dated back to the 1970s and housed local businesses, none of which are still open except for Village Cobbler. Keklikyan admits that, although the transition period was difficult, the current location is better for business.
“Definitely now it’s better because everything is new — new stores, lots of students are here now,” Keklikyan said.
The establishment of USC Village is part of the larger trend of gentrification around USC’s campus. Many local businesses were pushed out to create the development and residents were driven out of their homes.
“I think that when USC turned over [USC Village], they really tried to gear things toward students rather than the surrounding community,” said Lucy Santora, a senior majoring in international relations and public diplomacy who has frequented Village Cobbler to fix her shoes and bags. “But, I think that the role of the Cobbler works well with the surrounding community and USC students … That whole turnover is an interesting study of gentrification, but I’m very thankful that the Cobbler is still a part of USC Village.”
Yet in a profession that continues to dwindle in the United States, other cobblers have not been as lucky as Keklikyan. According to the Shoe Service Institute of America, shoe repair shops have decreased from 100,000 in the 1930s to 5,000 in 2019. While fast fashion proliferates, Keklikyan has made it clear that he is not leaving any time soon.
“This business [has] been here for a long time,” he said. “Everybody knows this business, they know the Village Cobbler. I didn’t even change the name because this name was popular already, and I don’t want to lose that.”
Building Community
When Kelikyan took over the business, it was difficult for him to establish a new clientele that knew him, not his uncle, as the face of the Village Cobbler. He enjoyed working with his uncle when he could and appreciates the loyalty of his former customers.
“All of my customers, even until now, they remember him,” Keklikyan said. “They love him. So they always stop by [and] say like, ‘How’s John doing?’”
Keklikyan’s service has driven significant customer engagement, even in nonbusiness matters. Alumni who have moved to the East Coast still send their shoes to him. A customer recently called him to weigh in on an argument about whether boots qualify as shoes. Customers drive from Long Beach, Orange County and Irvine for his expertise.
“It’s about the quality, about the service,” Keklikyan said. “That all matters when you are doing not only this business, but any business.”
Many students, including Santora, have had a continued history with Keklikyan’s shop. Santora’s first time going to the Village Cobbler was after her backpack handle broke off in her sophomore year, which Keklikyan fixed the same day.
“I have gone to get shoes resoled, some of my shoes for work, literally whatever you need, he can do, which is really awesome,” she said.
Santora appreciates Keklikyan’s friendliness and knowledge. She said he pays attention to detail and clearly communicates to customers how he plans on fixing whatever item they bring.
“He’s a very nice guy, and he’s definitely community-driven and really just wants to be there and hear about your time at USC,” she said.
Jenny Zhu, a senior studying economics, said she enjoys Keklikyan’s service and would recommend the business to any students.
“He was very reasonable,” Zhu said. “He did not want to take advantage of me being a student and having the convenience.”
Zhu said the Cobbler stands out among more corporate retail businesses in USC Village. The shop is only run by Keklikyan and it doesn’t have a website.
“This is definitely more handiwork,” Zhu said. “But I thought that it was very convenient for him to be there because if he wasn’t there at USC Village, then I would’ve gone on Yelp to find somewhere in downtown potentially to get my shoe fixed.”
For Keklikyan, who went to college in Armenia, working in USC Village surrounded by students is a way to give back. It is this giving that truly drives his business and has allowed the Village Cobbler to stick around for nearly 30 years.
“It’s honestly a nice place and location for business,” Keklikyan said. “I’ve been a student too — in front of [my] the university [there were] lots of shops and restaurants that I used. Now, I’m kind of giving that service they gave me when I was in the young ages.”