From teaching assistant, via speech therapist and photographer to eventually shoemaker in Hilversum. Femke Dix (33) chose a special route, but has now completely found her passion. “If I can make old shoes wearable again, that makes me happy!”
She spent a day with the previous owner and knew: I want that too. “I saw that transformation from worn-out shoe to almost like new again and I thought: I want to learn everything about this, I think this is great,” says Femke.
No sooner said than done. She trained as a shoe repairer and took over the shoemaker’s shop on Gijsbrecht van Amstelstraat in Hilversum more than a year ago. “The new name is Schoenmakerij Sole,” says Femke. “Sole stands for sole, but also sounds like the English word for soul.”
Because she does her job with heart and soul. “This is really my passion. Every shoe has a story,” says Femke. “Some people bring their favorite shoes that they’ve been wearing for 15 years and other times I fix someone’s wedding shoes. That’s what makes this job so special.”
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Femke Dix has found her passion – NH Nieuws
Starting for yourself in the middle of corona time, that’s quite a bit exciting. “Yes, huge. But luckily I can say that things are going well,” says Femke. “This is a really nice neighborhood and I get nice repairs. Customers keep coming back. And I enjoy it a lot, that’s the most important thing.”
And what is her specialty? “Sneakers, one hundred percent,” says Femke resolutely. “I’m a big sneaker fan myself, but most shoe stores mostly revolve around traditional shoes. People often think that sneakers can’t be repaired, but that’s fine. So as soon as a pair of sneakers comes in here, I’m happy.”
“When I walk into the shoemaker’s shop, it feels like coming home”
Her career followed an interesting route. “From teaching assistant, to speech therapist and photographer to shoemaker, that doesn’t seem very logical,” says Femke. “But I was taught from home: do what you like and it’s okay to switch and change your plan.” She does not see her previous studies as wasted time. “My experience as a photographer comes in handy, for example for promotion on social media.”
There are not many female shoemakers in the Netherlands, but according to Femke this is the most beautiful profession there is. “When I come in after the weekend and I smell the typical shoemaker smell, it feels like coming home.” And what is the best thing about her job? “That I can make people happy and give their beloved shoes a second life.”
Femke would like to give more publicity to a piece of black shoemaker history. In the video below she tells about an important Surinamese inventor: Jan Ernst Matzeliger.
Jan Ernst Matzeliger was the inventor of the shoe twisting machine – NH Nieuws