Cobbler's Bench

Doesn't Recommend

mtoamema

Joined 7 years ago

Belligerent owner. Don't spend your money here...please!. I came into this place to have my Gabor suede boots waterproofed. I totally understood that I needed to purchase a bottle of waterproof spray there to have it done properly; however, the man helping me (possibly the owner - which would be even more sad considering the belligerent behavior he so horribly demonstrated towards me) quickly picked up a bottle off of the front counter that looked as if it was the standard he used on all the boots - it seemed like the "Tester" bottle, rather than a new one. Possibly, it wasn't, but I wanted to ask since I was buying the entire bottle after all. A group of what looked like new bottles of the same brand sat above me on a high shelf. I simply asked this man in a very polite way, if that was a new bottle he was using, which I should have ever right to do as a customer. He then, abruptly and with harsh aggression, threw (yes threw!) my boots back in their box, yelling at me: "Yes! You think we are lying here?!?" (I'm thinking that was a rhetorical question). I felt, with that kind of reaction to my innocuous question, that I was definitely being swindled! I had caught this man taking advantage of me and he expressed disturbing anger in response. In fact, he was one behavioral step shy of physical abuse. Any reaction that one gets from a person, in a situation like the previous one I described, is in defense to cover up major inadequacies. This did not seem like a very moral business in Laurel Village.

Obviously, I am absolutely appalled at the service in this place! Perhaps, the man helping me here was having an off day, but it was no excuse for the aggressive, angry, and crude behavior he exhibited towards me. I cannot even believe people are still supporting this business, when there are so many other excellent shoe/bag repair shops in San Francisco (ie, Haight Street Shoe Repair - great owner, great service, great repairs!, Mike's of Noe Valley Shoe Repair, Frank's Shoe Repair, Union Street Shoe Repair, etc). This shop appeared to be in close proximity to where I was running my errands today, so that is the only reason why I walked in. Big mistake!

While this man and his team at Cobbler's Bench may do an excellent job with fixing shoes and bags, if you have good, sound principles, I would make the effort to steer clear of Cobbler's Bench and find a comparable place in craftsmanship - there are so many other high-quality shoe/bag repair shops in this city that seem honest towards their clientele, have great customer service, and deserve your business wholeheartedly.

Recommends

tracew

Joined 5 years ago

Personality so so but great quality. The guy can be a bit straight forward IE, he's running a business and not trying to make friends. That being said, he's a bit like the soup guy from Seinfeld in the sense that he's not real charming but he delivers a great product.

Doesn't Recommend

anna23

Joined 10 years ago

Don't waste your time!. Not only were my shoes "misplaced" for about two weeks, but the owner made me feel like it was my fault. I will never again step foot into that store (no pun intended)