FITTING PRETTY: LONGTIME SHOE SALESMAN HAS MADE FITTING SHOES A CRAFT FOR 65 YEARS

According to expert shoe salesman Homer Gilbert, the fit comes first; then the sale.

Properly fitting children and adults for shoes is a labor of love for Gilbert. His motto is to "do unto others as you would have them do unto you," which he said means a salesman should fit a person for a shoe the same way he would want his shoes to be fitted.

"Any clerk who would misfit a child -- or anybody for that matter -- just to make a sale should be fired," he said. "In fitting shoes, you have to use good judgment and be honest."

This year marks the shoe salesman's 65th anniversary in the business. More than 30 of those years have been spent at 115 N. Main, where Gilbert still works as a part-time salesman for Brown's Shoe Fit Co.

Gilbert's co-workers said he is a successful salesman who is well-liked by customers. He can converse on just about any subject, they said, and he honestly cares about doing his job well.

"The main thing is when he works with somebody his outlook is what's best for you, and that's what sells," said store manager Ron Wikel. "He just looks to the best interests of the customer and he won't sell a shoe just to sell a shoe."

Wikel said customers still seek Gilbert out, even though he retired more than 20 years ago and now only works on Saturdays. He has fit generations of families over the years, he said, and his specialty is fitting children's shoes.

"I can remember one Saturday when he waited on five generations that he had fit," Wikel said. "Homer's a true gentleman and he adores children. The kids know."

Gilbert said he has seen a lot of feet over the years: Small feet, big feet, pigeon-toed feet. Once he said, he even saw a pair of digestive feet.

"The doctor said he was digesting his shoes and that's why his shoes were only lasting four to six weeks," he said with a laugh. "This man's feet had the same acid in that the stomach uses to digest food, and the shoes he was wearing were made out of animal hides. It was one of the most peculiar things I've ever seen. We run into some funny, funny things."

Gilbert said collecting anecdotes such as the man with the digestive feet is an occupational hazard for people in the shoe business. You never know what will happen when you're working with somebody's feet, he said.

Recently, a mother came in to have her son fitted for a new pair of shoes. The son had a habit of kicking rocks and cans with his new shoes, and the mother asked Gilbert if he could do or say anything that would break this habit.

"I told him he had to respect his new shoes because they are almost as human as he is," Gilbert said with a deadpan expression. "He asked me how could I say that, so I explained it for him.

"Shoes have soles; so do you. Shoes have a tongue; so do you. Oxfords have eyes; so do you. Now, do you really want to kick all of those cans and be a heel?

"He didn't counter."

Maybe that wasn't a real event, or maybe it was. Either way, Gilbert said, it helps to have a handy story, quick wit, and lots of patience when selling shoes.

Although he's in his 65th year in the shoe business, he said he isn't planning to quit anytime soon. "One of the reasons I got into this business was because there were so many people who weren't being taken care of," he said. "If the good Lord gives me strength, I'll stay with it one day a week and fill in whenever they need me."