POLOKWANE – Sometimes we will never truly understand a person until we walk a mile in their shoes.
Ali Makgopa is a shoe repairman who works on the corner of Devenish and Market Streets where he has operated his business from since 2005 with a permit. With the money he makes from repairing shoes, he takes care of his wife and three children as well as three children of his late sister.
“It is not easy but I am trying. I’m grateful that my wife is also working because the situation could have been dire otherwise,” he said.
You might also want to read: Vendors cash in on the matric results
For someone who makes a living from repairing shoes, one can only imagine the amount of hard work that goes into making ends meet.
Working in the environment that he does, he is at the mercy of conditions around him. “If it starts raining right now, I would have to abandon work because I cannot work in the rain. That means I will have lost out on that day’s earnings. Unfortunately, even in harsh weather conditions, my family’s need still remains the same, meaning a plan has to be made or we will have to go without.”
Some of the challenges he faces are the quiet times in the month, where he is lucky if he has one client for the day. His biggest challenge by far, he added, is when clients bring their shoes to be repaired but don’t collect them for months.
People do not realise that when they do not pay in time for the service rendered, they are costing him dearly as he has to cover his travel expenses to the city from his home in Mankweng.
He pointed to a large bag beside him and said: “This bag is filled with people’s shoes who brought them in but never came back to collect them. I never get rid of them because sometimes people come back months later for their shoes. I recently had a woman come collect boots she brought to me in winter last year and you can’t do anything about it because you will never know the reasons behind someone being unable to come pay and collect their shoes.”
The people who make his job easier are those who bring in their shoes and come back to collect them within a reasonable amount of time. This also allows him to put the money they pay him to good use patching up areas that need attention.
Makgopa is a man of many talents and told BONUS he also makes traditional shoes for weddings. He was also once contracted to make shoes for disabled people.
For people who are looking for affordable wedding shoes, they can contact him at 079 961 0312 or 073 281 7634 or they can simply bring their shoes to his workplace as he is always available during the week.
