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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2018)
community december6 2018 13 The West Coast Shoe Company Story continued from page 8 percentage of our production like it used we were heavy into work boots but we comfortable fit. Customers can choose to,” says Roberta Shoemaker. “But it were starting to do other things,” says which style of toe they want for their is still an important part of us, because Chris Warren, who used to work on the boots, and dress shoes have several op- it goes all the way back to our roots factory floor but is now the Sales Man- tions for toe caps. Customers can make and our history. So many people come ager. “The transition to other styles and many personal choices in their design – here to our showroom and say, ‘My models needed to happen. We use a lot the color and type of leather and liners; grandfather used to wear your boots of designs that are derived from our the color and style of thread stitching; in the woods.’ So there’s generations old catalogs. I don’t think we needed the style of straps, buckles, rings, hooks of that history. It’s not just a boot that to reinvent the wheel for Wesco, but we and eyelets; the style of laces, and even we made and there’s nothing more to it. needed to do something to evolve to a the type of sole. Extra midsoles can be There’s family history to it. So they’ll bigger marketplace and bigger clien- added, as can heel lifts, safety toes and always be important to us.” tele.” linings, and extra straps. You can even Other well known Wesco work A tour of the factory allows a have them add on a pocket for a phone, boots are still in regular production. The visitor to see the entire production pro- Jobmaster, Packer, and the classic Ro- cess. From the rolls of different grades meo are versatile work boots and shoes of leather, each hand inspected and mea- designed for everyday use both outdoors sured for appropriate thickness, to the and indoors. The Volt Foe, Highliner, and numerous stations where craftspeople Firestormer are specialty boots for elec- cut, sew, and attach the various leather trical workers, climbers, and firefight- pieces, to the bottom soles being nailed ers. Law enforcement agencies around on by hand, to the stock storeroom the West purchase the Motorcycle Patrol where the final product sits, it’s a labor model for their officers. intensive and skilled operation. Their boots are made for both One of the most unique aspects men and women says Bruce Shoemaker, of Wesco’s product lines is the oppor- a great grandson of John Henry. “Peo- tunity to customize a purchase; custom ple think of our work products as a guy’s orders make up about 55% of all sales, boot, but so many women are taking says Sales Manager Warren. Customers nontraditional jobs now and they de- trace and measure their feet and legs in- serve to have the same quality tools to dividually so the bootmakers can hand wear as anybody else.” Bruce Shoe- cut the leather to the exact size and build maker joined the family business a few the boot from the sole up for an exact and years ago to help prepare for the 100 th anniversary cel- knife, or credit card. ebration after running his Of course, all those own market research com- custom options do come with pany. a price, and their boots and As mentioned earli- shoes are not inexpensive to er, Wesco doesn’t just make start with. Wesco likes to think work boots. Motorcycle and of their boots as an investment, horse enthusiasts love their one you will wear and use for Boss, Morrison, and Har- many years, maybe even de- ness model boots. The JH cades. “We sell to that five to Classics, Hendrik, and the ten percent of people that re- Robert William are oxford alize the difference and buy dress shoes for men with quality things because they the same toughness and in- last a long time and they get tegrity of their boots; the JH their money’s worth from it,” Classics is named after com- says Bruce Shoemaker. And of pany founder John Henry. A course those work boots that get line of signature boots that used and abused day in and day includes the Fraze, Pheonix, out can always be rebuilt. “We Black Widow, and Athena have guys come in that have add some savvy feminine been wearing the same pair of style to Wesco’s collection. boots for 10 and 20 years, they Wesco boots and just keep sending them back and shoes have a worldwide fol- having them rebuilt. They keep lowing and have become them oiled and don’t let them particularly popular in plac- dry out. The leather will last a es like Japan, China, Hong long time if you maintain it.” New pairs of boots and shoes waiting for the next step Kong, and in parts of Eu- An American owned in the shoemaking process. rope. “When I started here manufacturing business that has VNC 503-429-9333 Recreational & Medical Marijuana Dispensary Serving the Community Mariolino’s Pizza & Grill Vernonia’s Natural Choice Open for breakfast, lunch & dinner Daily Specials We have ice cream! Cones-Shakes-Sundaes Open 7 days 10am - 8pm 886 Bridge Street 721 Madison Avenue, Vernonia (503) 429-5018 Featuring: • Edibles • Concentrates • CBD Oils, Topicals, & Tinctures • Flower Grams & Pre-rolled Joints Serving Vernonia since 1970 Above: Craftspeople at the Wesco factory in Scappoose build boots and shoes, cutting leather by hand and hand nailing the soles. Left: Wesco makes more than just work boots for loggers, climbers, and electrical workers; horse and motorcycle enthusiasts are also loyal customers. remained family owned is a bit of an anomaly these days. But the West Coast Shoe Company and the Shoemaker fam- ily seem to have hit on the right recipe. “The thing about Wesco Shoes is that they’ve been great community part- ners throughout the years, but they’re kind of quiet and in the background,” says County Commissioner Heimuller. “Until this year during their 100 th anni- versary celebration, I would guess that over fifty percent of the people who live in Scappoose had never heard of Wesco Shoes.” “In logging communities like Vernonia they were well known be- cause their product lasts forever and were a high quality safety boot,” adds Heimuller. “And they’ve done a great job marketing a high-end product to the world. But they’ve done all that with- out having lost their true DNA, which is building a damn good shoe in Scap- poose, Oregon.” Marie Krahn Massage Therapy Auto injury recovery/medical billing • Accepting: Medical Benefits Cards • Medical Massage Cupping • Swedish Massage • Reiki • Deep Tissue • Reflexology • doTerra Aroma Touch • Trigger Point Therapy • Myofacial Release 503-429-5180 lic#5495 mariekrahn@frontier.com
