Veteran turns to mending shoes for a living
13 Jul 2023 12:14pm
The modest skill of mending shoes at alley ways has indeed been beneficial for a retired army officer, Kamaruzaman Mat Zin - FILE PIX
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Kamaruzaman, 50, said he acquired the skill while serving in the army in Perak, where initially he was just ‘hanging out’ at the shoe-mending shop of an acquaintance.
"When I was still serving (in the army), I was active in football, because of that, I had many contacts among the players.
"That's where the idea to learn the skill of sewing shoes came about because I envisioned that this skill could be useful as a source of income one day after retirement,” he told Bernama at his shop in Tanah Merah town here today.
Elaborating further, the father of five said exposure to seeing how to sew and mend shoes while helping out the friend, stirred a sense of interest, which led him to inherit the skill.
Kamaruzaman said that after retiring from the army at the age of 45, he wasted no time in opening a shoe-repair shop and received an encouraging response, in addition to the trend where shoe designs at this time were not hardy to last but rather bent on wear and tear.
"I am grateful for the good fortune of being blessed with good health, still being active in football and being able to add more contacts that gave me the opportunity to render my services to those in need.
"I never guessed mending shoes on the sidewalk could become a sustenance when it came to retirement, and even becoming a foothold as a source of income to support my family until now,” said Kamaruzaman who served at Camp Batu 11 in Tanah Merah which was his last camp of service.
Now marching to the beat of a different drum, the fee he charges for mending shoes or slippers starts from RM3 to RM80 depending on the type of footwear and method of stitching the repair requires.
"Alhamdulillah, I earn more than RM100 a day with the shop operating hours from 10am to 6.30pm,” he said - BERNAMA
