Pendergrass Family Shoe Repair

Terrible customer service. It amazes me when small businesses like this one care so very little about the way they present themselves to potential customers. The long and short of my experience was I needed a boot repaired same day — which I was told was impossible after waiting nearly fifteen minutes just to speak to a human (side note: the place reeks, so it’s not an environment one wants to be in longer than absolutely necessary). All my boot required was a gluing to keep the sole in tact, so I was confused why this was a job that couldn’t be done same day, despite the time needed to let the glue dry. Regardless, the clerk showed little to no interest in my business, which I happily took elsewhere. Will not be returning. Can’t imagine why anyone would.

The problem with Pendergrass is not in the quality of the work, but it’s the fact that they are unprofessional. I dropped my shoes on Thursday and returned the following Thursday and they were not ready. The store told me that the shoes would be ready by this time if not before. I then had to wait another 30 minutes for the shoes to be ready. I will never come here again and well tell others the same. It’s about respect and this family establishment did not respect my time, which is unacceptable.

Good people and a good place. They will always do you right!

Had a TERRIBLE experience here once.
Well, that’s in addition to a few uncomfortable ones before that (read: two of the family bratty rugrat boys yelling and fighting in the store in front of customers, then they go outside to continue the argument with the smoking mom outside whom you can hear screaming at them to shut up… classy).
Brought them a pair of loafers my dog chewed on. First they told me I needed to go to a different store down the street to buy matching leather. Okay, done. Then I come back and they say it shouldn’t be more than a few days but that they’d let me know something. A week goes by and nothing, so I drop in. They search around for the shoes and find them — untouched — and say again that they’ll let me know. NO apologies. Okay, rolling my eyes I go out and then… another 2 WEEKS go by (!!) and still nothing! So after them having my shoes for 3 weeks I go in and ask about my shoes, telling them I’ve been waiting for contact from them… they go and bumble around in the back, talk amongst each other, and come out with the shoes… again untouched. No explanations, no apologies, nothing. I grab my shoes and leave, telling them I’ll take them somewhere else… and still, nothing from them. I actually felt insulted as I was leaving… they obviously are not worried about the perception they gave me that day.
There aren’t a ton of shoe repair places in Knoxville (perhaps another reason why they don’t care), but I’m going to try out the other one on Kingston Pike.

This place looks sketch, but the service is right!
I took in a pair of black booties with a worn down heel. You could see the nail in the shoe. The shiny black coloring was also rubbing off to show the white plastic base. They tapped my shoe and applied enough polish to look like nothing was ever wrong with it. It cost maybe 10 dollars and was done in a week.
I am also waiting on a jacket that they are completely inserting a new zipper line into. I will update when it’s finished.

Great Local Shoe Repair Store. Family owned. Nice people.
Roger’s Shoe Repair (Knox Plaza — Where Kroger and S&S Cafeteria lies) is also one of my favorite places to get your shoes fixed.

I have taken my shoes there and gotten great results with fast service.
Pair 1: stretched and insole added. Haven’t had a blister or sore feet since, and it’s been a few years
Pair 2: stretched. Perfect fit.
Pair 3 and 4: Heel inserts. Only complaint is that they used a flesh colored insert in a black shoe. It’s pretty obvious, but I don’t mind. Mostly because both shoes fit like a glove now. And no heel blisters!
The price is right and the results are awesome. Go nowhere else!

I’ve taken about a half-​dozen different pairs of shoes to this place and they’ve done a pretty good job on each one. One pair of hiking boots had to be completely rebuilt from the soles up after a hike in Yosemite and the Pendergrass family put some new Vibram soles on to make them waterproof again.
Like most shoe repair places, the store smells like lung cancer. The air is actually so noxious inside that my wife has to stay in the car to keep from getting a headache. I assume that the people who work there just don’t notice it anymore.
Another quirk about the store is that they appear to have one of the finest Amish record-​keeping systems in the area. Shoes are logged into a ragged spiral-​bound notebook. Finished pairs are placed on a shelf, tied up in a white plastic grocery bag. The point of this story is to let you know that if you forget your claim ticket, it’s a serious process to find your shoes. Every bag of shoes looks identical, and records are kept in this little notebook, full of doodles, crossed-​out orders, and different handwritings. Keep your claim tag. I wish I had.
The store is located right at the very top of Bearden Hill in the little strip of stores next to Soccer Taco. Maybe start with a small job first — a little polishing touchup. If you’re happy with the work and the turnaround time, they can do much bigger projects. I’ve even seen people bring in horseriding leather gear for repair.
There aren’t a lot of places like this left. Disposable Payless shoes don’t need the kind of TLC that real quality footwear demands. If you’ve got some decent shoes in need of help, check out Pendergrass.