STEPPING IN

12/27/05

By FRANK NELSON
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

Bryan and Michelle Thomas want to keep Shoetown family-owned

One of Santa Barbara's last remaining independent shoe stores has changed hands for the first time in many years, breaking a connection with the Harter family that goes back to 1965.

However, Shoetown will still be independently owned and will stay open at 3419 State St., where shoes for men, women and children have been sold for more than 40 years.

The new owners are Bryan and Michelle Thomas, who bought Crispin Leather on West Anapamu Street when they settled in Santa Barbara two years ago and recently added the Leather Guild, in Isla Vista.

Mr. Thomas said he and his wife and their respective parents, who together own Crispin, are not trying to create some sort of shoe and leather empire. He says it was just chance that these two outlets, which complement Crispin, happened to come on the market so close together.

According to Mr. Thomas, there were perhaps as many as 17 family-owned shoe stores in the area through the 1970s and today they have virtually all disappeared.

"We all want to keep independent stores going and not see everything taken over by the large chains," he said. "We agreed we would rather keep Shoetown in the family if we could."

Though discussions with Mr. Harter began back in August, the deal closed only a few days ago.

Shoetown had been going three years when Gerald Harter, who'd had a shoe shop in Chicago, arrived in Santa Barbara and bought the business. When he wanted to retire 16 years ago, his son Ken took over.

The Thomases say Shoetown will continue to be staffed by a professional sales force -- longtime manager Ray Arroyo, sales assistant Mike Summers and two more experienced staff members whom they will hire.

Mr. Arroyo remains a bridge with the past, having first worked for Gerald Harter and his father-in-law in Chicago in the early '60s before following Mr. Harter to Santa Barbara and starting work at Shoetown in 1968.

The new owners say Shoetown will be like a 1950s shoe store in terms of full fittings and customer service while offering a blend of comfort and modern fashion footwear that Ms. Thomas says both "feels good and looks good."

The couple say they also plan to expand a section of the store dedicated to dance shoes, clothing and accessories -- "This is the oldest dance service store in Santa Barbara," says Mr. Arroyo -- install some machines for on-site repairs and increase the range of orthotic footwear.

The shop will also undergo a face-lift with new carpet, furniture, paint and window displays while a new computer system will help improve efficiency and service by tracking the purchase history of individual customers.

"We're moving into the modern age but not losing the personal touch," said Mr. Arroyo.

RAFAEL MALDONADO/NEWS-PRESS
Manager Raymond Arroyo, left, and owners Bryan and Michelle Thomas, have marched into Shoetown.