Shoe shop to the stars set to expand

Where does Wayne Newton turn to when his shoes need refurbishing? What shop does Frank Marino call when his heels are due for repair? The answer: Shoe Lab.

Shoe Lab has been a Las Vegas staple at 3900 Paradise Road for nearly nine years and now it has a shop on the other side of town, in Boca Park, near the very eastern end of the center.

Shoe Lab started in California. It has six locations in the Los Angeles area and the first Las Vegas location opened in September 1995.

Up and down the Strip, performers rely on Shoe Lab. Celine Dion has 12 pair of identical shoes for her show. She wears one pair for each performance before sending them out to Shoe Lab for reconditioning.

When Cher and her entourage arrived for her concert at the MGM recently, not all her luggage arrived. Shoe Lab was sent an emergency request: Make a size 7 1/2 pair of black suede boots for Cher, ASAP.

"We really worked hard to get them done," Shoe Lab owner Jerry Guederian said. "I mean, the show was on a Saturday night and they contacted us Thursday morning. It usually takes four weeks to make something like that but we worked 24 hours with six or seven guys to get it done in time."

Other major shows on Shoe Lab's roster are "Jubilee!," "Mamma Mia!," "Folies Bergere," "Legends in Concert," "Tournament of Kings," "Splash" and "Zumanity."

Shoe Lab also carries a line of luggage. Luggage repair accounts for about 35 percent of the company's business. Elton John was one of Shoe Lab's latest customers after his luggage was damaged in transit.

Of course, everyday people need the shop's services, too. At Boca Park, the brightly lit shop allows customers to view shoe repairs as they are done through a Plexiglas wall.

The clean lines make an impression on customers. Bruce Wells of England, visiting family in Summerlin South, brought in a piece of luggage for a handle repair.

"For a shoe repair shop, this is really clean," he said. "Normally they're tucked back in these little places. This place looks respectable."

Along the north wall are items relating to foot care and shoes -- insoles, wooden stretchers, sets of Kiwi shoe shine items and long shoe horns designed for those who can't bend over very far.

But perhaps the most curious thing about the shop is the assortment of status shopping bags along the walls. There is Versace and Dior, Gucci, Chanel, Saks, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom.

They help bring home the message Shoe Lab is the only certified shoe repair company for those name brands. The shop's signature pink bags are on display, too.

Guederian, a resident of Las Vegas, said his wife Sandy chose the company's color scheme when he started the business 10 years ago.

"We looked through all these colors and she said pink would be good," he said. "She has good taste and I take her opinion (to heart)."

By the end of 2005, he said, there should be six locations around the valley, including new shops in Green Valley, Henderson and Centennial Hills.


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