They all have something in common at Bob's Shoe Repair.

The rancher whose cowboy boots have worn, manure-caked heels. The lady with a broken strap on her Louis Vuitton purse. The logger who needs the toes reinforced on his sturdy work boots. The girl who wants a smooth sole on her rhinestone-spangled gym shoes, so she can wear them to dance.

And they will all get the help they need, thanks to new owners Chad and Kalynn Scoular, who will keep the shop open after longtime owner Bob Wessel died of a brain aneurysm in April, putting the future of the Main Street mainstay in question.

Wessel grew up working in the shop that his father, Bob Sr., opened in 1946. The younger Wessel took over in 1979, three years after his father died and months after he married his wife, Lori, both of them just 19.

Bob and Lori worked together in the shop for 30 years, and they celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary 10 days before he died.

Lori Wessel, who also owns the building that the shop and two other businesses are in, didn't want to take over as sole owner of Bob's Shoe Repair, so she listed it with Bob's old friend, Realtor Dave Jones, though she was unsure if she could find someone to buy it and keep it running. She even considered selling all the equipment to a shoe repair business in another state, but hated to see all their hard work dismantled.

But the future owner was closer than Wessel thought.

She mentioned the listing to former employee Chad Scoular, who was working at Runnings, but had been stopping often to visit since Bob died.

Scoular called his wife. "The first thing she said was, ‘Here's your opportunity.'" Chad and Kalynn Scoular took over the shop Oct. 1 and say they look forward to providing the community the same service and friendly atmosphere Bob's has offered for decades.

"The community supports the shop, and they're just happy to see it stay open," Chad Scoular said.

Scoular worked at Bob's for several years while he was a business student at National American University. A Colorado native who grew up ranching and rodeoing, he was accustomed to working with leather on saddles and chaps. Bob Wessel taught him not only how to fix shoes, but the importance of attention to detail and customer service, Scoular said.

Now, he gets choked up thinking of Wessel, but at the same time is enthusiastic about serving the shop's loyal customers and about the opportunity to put both his artistic and business skills to use.

With his Wrangler jeans and cowboy mustache, his denim apron and his hands blackened and scarred from the shoe repair machines, Scoular looks like an old hand at the business. And it's a good time to take over.

While the number of shoe repair shops has fallen significantly since the Wessels started the business, those left are in a boom year throughout the country, he said.

"It's a whole lot cheaper to get it fixed than it is to buy new ones," Scoular said.

Kalynn Scoular, who works with trusts at Pioneer Bank and Trust, said they've had a warm reception so far.

"People remember coming here since they were little kids," she said. They tell her, "I just can't imagine if Bob's Shoe Repair weren't here."

For Lori Wessel, who will work at the shop just a few more days, selling the shop was a difficult decision, but she's pleased with the outcome.

"I feel extremely lucky that it all came together," she said. "It's bittersweet, but to know Bob knew Chad made all the difference."

Contact Barbara Soderlin at 394-8417 or barbara.soderlin@rapidcityjournal.com