It used to be you couldn’t go a city block without seeing a shoe shine stand on every corner. Nowadays, they’re few and far between. And should you so happen to pass one and pony up for a shine, you’ll often find a rather rushed job with little proper attention paid to both you or the shoes on your feet.
But there are some folks who are trying to change all that. Folks who are trying to bring back the art of both the proper shoe shine and the proper conversation that’s supposed to go with it. Or rather, proper conversation, period. And a perfect example of that are the folks at A Shine & Co., a small shoe shine startup based out of New York and San Francisco. So we decided to sit down and have a proper conversation with the owner and founder himself, Kevin Tuohy, to pick his brain and chat about shoes, shoe shining, and everything else in between.
So Kevin, tell us—what is A Shine & Co.?
A Shine & Co. is a high-end shoe shine service that’s been in business for over 20 years. We have six locations—three in New York and three in San Francisco. And we do special events all over the United States.
And why the name?
Because I really look at the whole shoe shine thing as more of an experience. You’re not just getting a shine, you’re getting some company with it. A little reprieve from your daily grind where you get to sit down, relax, enjoy a bit of a foot massage, and even some good conversation. Well, most of the time, at least.
And what do those conversations typically entail?
(Laughs) Well, the country’s so polarized now, so it’s definitely tough. I always say there are three topics I try and stay away from: religion, politics, and sex.
Three of the most interesting topics to talk about…
(Laughs) Yeah, exactly.
You mentioned you do events. What kind?
Conventions, trade shows, employee/client appreciation events, fashion events. Pretty much anything you can think of. And if you can’t think of it, there’s a good chance we probably do it too.
And you have locations in both New York and San Francisco? Do you prefer one over the other?
You know, I can honestly say I love them both. New York is so exciting right now, business is taking off, and we can’t find enough people to work.
But I love San Francisco. My family is there, my friends are there, I lived there for 20 years, and it’s a really special place. When I’m there I want to stay there, and when I’m here in New York, I can’t get out.
Yeah, that’s somewhat of a familiar problem here. And where are the locations in San Francisco?
Well, we have a location in Crock Galleria, which is kind of an atrium/shopping center at the foot of the Financial District. And then there’s 555 California Ave, which is the second tallest building in San Francisco and the former headquarters for Bank of America. And we’re also in Embarcadero One, which is a big shopping center and office complex.
And what clientele do you typically get out there? Working professionals? Tourists?
Not so much tourists. We get more of that here in New York. Almost half the business here is tourists, but not in San Francisco. Most of them are locals or business men and women here for work.
Gotcha. And what about here in New York? Where do you guys operate?
In New York we have four locations in the Delta terminal at La Guardia Airport and one at the jetBlue terminal, T5, at JFK. And of course this location here in the Chelsea Market.
Let’s talk a little bit about you and your background. What kind of work did you do before you got into shining shoes?
I’ve done pretty much everything under the sun. I was in the army for three years. I’ve been a pizza boy, flower boy, paperboy. I’ve worked at hotels, waitered at restaurants, bartended and bar-backed—you name it.
Wow. So how did you end up shining shoes? Not necessarily the first career someone thinks of when trying to plan out their future…
No, no way. Definitely not. No, I was between jobs, and I met a woman who said she was hiring shoe shiners and that she thought I’d be good at it. And I told her, I said, “You know what? I did it in the army and I hated it.” I hated shining my own shoes. Plus I was usually too drunk to do them. But she asked me to give it a shot and so I did, and I fell in love with it.
How’s that?
Well, I love it because I’m a comedian, I’ve got a customer service background, and I love talking to people—I’m a people’s person. I love making people happy. And I’m also an artist, and the two really go great together. All my creative juices go into the shoes and the art of the shine, and I also get the chance to hone my peoples skills.
When you say you’re an artist, what do you mean?
Well, I grew up wanting to be a comic book artist, but the more it became a business—the more I felt like I had to do it, the less I wanted to do it, and so it kind of died on the vine.
But this (shoe shining) is a total art. You’re working with different colors and leathers, different textures, using different products—it’s wild. Most people don’t realize just how much goes into a simple shoe shine.
And so where’d you learn the art? How did you come to master the perfect shoe shine?
(Laughs) Well, I was trained in the army, and then this woman named Jessica trained me, and the rest has been kind of on-the-job training. You know, it’s like anything else. Over time you just get better at it.
And you said you did comedy also?
A little bit…I mean, I’m a comedian, but I’m not a paid comedian….
So you’re a funny guy.
(Laughs), Yeah, I’m a funny guy. Thank you.
Have you done standup before?
I have, I have. Only once. I loved it, but I’m just too busy shining shoes to really perfect a bit.
I read in a recent Esquire article that over your 20+ years of doing this, you’ve shined the shoes of practically everyone—from priests and rabbis to politicians, gangsters, millionaires, and even a fair share of celebs. You must have a ton of great stories…any one in particular stand out?
Yes, absolutely. Lately La Guardia’s been a lot of fun. We recently had Preetinder Singh “Preet” Bharara, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. And he’s a great guy. From New Jersey, a big Springsteen fan. So we had a lot of laughs, and he had a great sense of humor. And Pauly Shore…
Pauly Shore gets his shoes shined?
(Laughs) No, no. He didn’t get his shoes shined, but I bumped into him at a shop in the airport. He needed help with the electronic register, so I helped him buy his lunch.
I see. So you’re also pretty tech savvy as well, huh?
I try.
And who else’s shoes have you shined recently?
I’ve shined Bill Bradley, a ton of politicians and CEOs. One day we had Steve Schirripa, the guy who played Bobby “Bacala” Baccalieri on the The Sopranos. We also had Joe Pantoliano from The Sopranos and the mayor from The Wire—Clarence Royce, played by Glynn Turman. I think he was also from that old 70’s show, Cooley High.
A lot of HBO shows…
(Laughs) Yeah.
So what are some of the stranger customer experiences you’ve had?
You know, I always find it fascinating how some people will actually show up with dog shit on their shoes and ask me to clean it up for them.
Come on, for real?
Yeah, it’s unbelievable. I mean, I know we shine shoes, but dog shit? It’s a little ridiculous.
That’s for sure. I’d like to move on to you and your own personal style. You’ve got very eclectic taste. Especially today…First off, the shoes. I’m loving them. Who makes them? What kind of shoes are they?
These are actually custom made spectators, or two-tones. I love ankle boots, and these were custom made in San Francisco by a guy named Al’s Attire.
So how many pairs of shoes do you actually own?
About 20-30.
That’s quite a bit. You ever wear sneakers?
Once in a blue moon. I actually just picked up a great pair of used leather Jack Purcell ankle sneakers that pretty much look brand spanking new. But mostly I just wear shoes. I tend to overdress. I like to look nice and proper so customers understand that I’m the real deal. That I take my work seriously.
Well it definitely shows. So who informs this eclectic style?
You know, it’s just over time. When I first started shining shoes about 20 years ago, there was a bit of a swing revival going on, and I remember we got hired to do one of these swing events, and so I got a fedora, braces, these zoot suit pants, a pair of spectators, and we became like the swinging shoeshine guys—we started swing dancing, shining shoes, and everything. It was pretty wild.
“The Swinging Shoeshine Guys”—you should trademark that…
(Laughs) Yeah, we definitely should.
And now? Where does most of your style inspiration come from today?
Well, you know, over time time a lot has changed. Instead of suspenders I rock a vest now. Where I used to always wear slacks, I can now get away with a nice pair of jeans and shoes to match.
And when it comes to those shoes, is there a particular brand you normally stick to? What brands do you feel make some of the better quality shoes out there?
Alden makes some great shoes. Allen Edmonds, which are still mostly made in the United States, are also really solid.
Do you find that shoes made here in the good ‘ol US of A have an advantage over, say, Italian shoes?
You know, it really depends. Italian-made shoes are beautiful—beautifully designed and crafted— but they tend not to last as long as other types of shoes because often times the leather’s thinner, the sole’s thinner, etc. It’s really more of a style thing. And a cultural thing. You know, Italians aren’t really beating the streets like we are here in New York. It’s just a different lifestyle here.
That’s an interesting observation to point out. Do you see more wear and tear on shoes in certain areas vs others?
For sure. I mean, here in New York, shoes take a pretty big beating with the winter and all, but in a city life San Francisco, you really don’t get that kind of damage because the weather’s a lot calmer.
And what about when it comes to cleaning and caring for your shoes? What makes a quality shoe shine?
Well there really a lot of things that go into a great shoe shine. You can have great products, but if you don’t know what you’re doing, it means nothing.
So I’d say it’s products, experience. It’s skill. It’s also showmanship. What we try to do here at A Shine & Co. is strive to include a bit of showmanship, because we really want people to have more than just a shine. We want them to have that experience.
Also, a lot of shiners out there skip steps and don’t pay attention to a lot of the details. We don’t. We go the extra mile and make sure to clean the shoes first, use the best products, then provide that bit of company, that bit of conversation—a bit of a break—from your daily routine. You know, like I said before, you’re not just getting a shoe shine. You’re getting a foot massage, some good conversation, and hopefully some laughs. Hopefully.
And how long does a typical shoe shine go for?
A good shine usually takes about 10 minutes or so.
And once those shoes are shined, how long does that typical shine last? Or how long should it last?
It really all depends. I had a guy come by the other day and told me how one of my guys talked him into a $12 shoe shine, and a year later it’s still shining. But it really all depends. How often you wear the shoes, do you wear them in the rain or snow, do you take care of them, etc. But typically a good shoe shine should last at least a solid month or two.
So how often would you recommend someone get their shoes shined? Assuming you wear them every other day or every couple of days.
I’d say about once a month or so. It’s like your own skin. You don’t want it to get too dry, or else it cracks, so the same thing goes with shoes. Most quality shoes are usually made of leather, and leather creases, cracks, and ages just like your skin, so you don’t want them to get too dry or else they’ll crack, and then water and other elements will get into their skin and destroy the shoe.
And do certain types of shoes need more shining or cleaning than others. For example, canvas versus rubber, leather versus suede. How does leather compare to suede?
Suede is actually rather easy to take care of. Unfortunately most people don’t realize this. It’s easy because you don’t really need to shine anything. All you need is a suede eraser, which literally works like a regular eraser to remove all the dirt and garbage collected on the suede. Then you get a brush to clean it up a bit and boom—you’re done. You can also use a suede protector—that does a lot to protect the suede and keep dirt off of it.
I always thought those were a bit of a gimmick.
No, not at all. There’s actually a great product out there now that’s a sort of nano-protector, where you can actually pour coffee on a pair of suede shoes that have been treated with it and it won’t damage the shoes. But if you can’t find that product or fail to do the whole eraser/brush thing, you can always just use simple shampoo.
Shampoo?
Yeah, for sure. Some people even throw their shoes in the washer or dryer. Of course you have to be careful when you do that. I mean, suede’s tough, but you can still mistreat it. It’s just like your own hair. It’s tough, but if you pull it too much, it’s gonna come out, right?
That’s for sure. So what’s the best way to care for your shoes at home?
One of the things people always fail to do is, they buy their shoes, take them right out of the box, and wear them right away. You know, it’s just like when you go to the beach, you put sunblock on to protect yourself, right? Well, the same thing goes with shoes. When you take them out of the box, you need to put something on them to protect them. They don’t come out of the box protected, they come out raw.
You mention the boxes. Women love to keep their shoes in boxes. Is there anything to that?
Yeah, it’s actually a pretty good idea, especially if you have a ton of shoes. It keeps them from getting beat up, helps keep the form of the shoes. Also shoe trees. Shoe trees really help.
Do you keep all your shoes in boxes or use shoe trees?
(Laughs) No, I definitely don’t. Honestly, it just takes too much time. I wish I had it, but unfortunately I don’t. But there are other ways to help protect and maintain your shoes. One great way is to buy a simple leather balm. It’s basically a shoe cleaner that you just rub onto your shoes, then wipe right off. At the very least it just keeps your shoes looking fresh and clean.
What’s the oldest pair of shoes you own?
I’ve got a pair of Florsheim Shell cordovans. They’re pretty vintage.
Shell cordovan?
Yeah, shell cordovan. It’s some of the toughest leather around. Like the muscle of a horse’s ass. Almost like cartilage—it’s that tough. And these are pretty old. I mean, I haven’t done a carbon dating test on them or anything like that, but they gotta be at least 20 years old.
And you still wear them?
Oh yeah, they’re beautiful! They look great. Basically regular wingtips that are always in style. To me those are the coolest types of shoes. You can never fail with a pair of wingtips. They always look great.
And do you prefer black? Brown? Something else?
I like black. I also really like two-tones. They’re really eye-catching. It takes a lot of balls to pull them off, and I like that.
So you’re saying you’ve got a lot of balls?
(Laughs) I don’t know about a lot, but they’re definitely pretty big.
(Laughs) Of course. So does black hold up better than brown?
Well, you know, black definitely hides dirt better than other colors like white, brown, or tan. So yeah, for sure. The lighter the colors, the dirtier they get. So that’s always something to keep in mind.
Let’s talk about your employees. I read somewhere that many of them happen to also be sober. Is that true? And if so, how did that come about?
Yup, that’s definitely true. Back in San Francisco, I started out working for a certain shoe shine stand and was fortunate enough to eventually take it over. Things were going great, but I was starting to get a little lonely out there, and so I started asking some of my friends if they wanted to work. Of course at that time, all my friends were sober, as was I, so it just kind of spiraled from there and became like, the “Sober Shoeshine Stand.” (laughs)
“The Sober Shoeshine Stand”—another trademark!
(Laughs) Yeah, I guess I’m just full of them today.
Seriously. So back to the whole sober/drinking thing, we now know you’ve obviously done your fair share of boozing. What about marijuana? Did you ever smoke?
I did, I did. Oh yeah. The first time I smoked I was seven.
Seven?
(Laughs) Yeah, seven. My brother, who’s fourteen years older than me, took me to a concert. You know, that was the seventies. The early seventies. And he took me to a concert full of hippies, and that’s pretty much what they did then. You know back then it wasn’t a big deal, but obviously now, at seven—that’s probably a bit too young (laughs).
(Laughs) Yeah, probably. And what about now? Obviously there’s a huge push right now towards legalization, and many states have already passed their own legislation to make cannabis legal, both medicinally and recreationally. What’s your take on that? Are you for it? Against it?
You know, personally, I’m for it. I think alcohol’s way more dangerous. If anything, it should be the opposite. Alcohol should be the illegal substance, and marijuana legal. I just don’t think it’s as dangerous. Listen, I’m no scientist or doctor, but I can just talk from my own personal experiences.
I also think it’s sad that it’s been criminalized the way it has been. That people are going to jail for these small amounts of marijuana, when in reality there’s much more of an epidemic with alcohol and alcohol consumption. Alcohol deaths are so high and there’s so much money being spent on taking care of alcohol-related deaths and accidents. You know, in San Francisco, it’s really become an epidemic. The police and fire departments are constantly getting calls for alcohol-related issues, whether they be public nuisances, public safety issues, etc. And you don’t really see that with marijuana.
Well yeah, we’d rather just chill and watch a movie, maybe see a show…
(Laughs) Exactly. There’s none of that violent element that often consumes those who drink too much.
So what are your plans for the future? What’s in store for A Shine & Co.?
Well, we might do something at Newark airport. We’d definitely like to open a few more shops in the city too—Midtown, Wall St., etc., but we’ll see.
And do you guys do anything online right now?
Yup, we do. It’s called ashinetogo.com, and you can go there, choose your shoe type, your shine, any extra add-ons, and we’ll send you a box to ship them in and take care of the rest. We even do repairs.
Wow, that’s great to know. I feel like my shoes are always in need of repair.
Well Kevin, it was great chatting with you. Any last words of wisdom or tips on life, shoes, whatever, you’d like to leave with our readers?
Be kind.
And smoke it too?
(Laughs) Sure.
Photography by Briscoe Savoy | IG: @briscoenyc
