(PNS reporting from CHICAGO) Chuy’s Choo Repair on Ashland has been fixing heels, stretching boots and giving new soles to tired oxfords since 1956, but owner Eddie Calderon doesn’t know how long he can keep his shop open.
Calderon (photo, right), whose father opened the business when he returned to Chicago after the Korean War, says he can’t keep up with cheap imported shoes flooding the country.
“Look at the pinches chanclas on sale at the Dollar Store!” Calderon told PNS as we toured the neighborhood (photo, top.) “If people can buy new Chinese chanclas for 60 cents at the stupid Dollar Store, why would they want to get them repaired if a strap breaks? It’s not worth it!”
“Used to be,” he said, “that quality chanclas could be thrown at one generation of kids and then passed from mother to daughter, ready to keep a new litter of mocosos in line. Did you ever read The Chancla on Mango Street? Those days are gone.”
PREVIOUSLY ON CHANCLAS:
- No joke! Kid gets la chancla after pranking his mom (NSFW video)
- A fashion trend from the 1990s — chanclas with socks — is back
- Latina mamás agree: Chanclas are safe and effective discipline (video)
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POCHO ÑEWS SERVICE PNS IS A WHOLLY-FICTITIOUS SUBSIDIARY OF POCHISMO INC., A CALIFORNIA CORPORATION, WHO IS A PERSON ACCORDING TO THE SUPREME COURT. DON’T ASK US, WE JUST WORK HERE.