Yellow Pages Mixup

For the past two weeks or so, I have been getting calls for people looking for a shoe repair shop. Now, I know what you are thinking. Why would they be calling me. Well, about 25 years ago, I opened my Sam's Club membership with a business name, The Shoemaker's Daughter. My father was a shoemaker/shoe repairman and I had some of the leather sewing machines from his shop. I was making small leather goods such as purses, wallets, etc. Anyway, I never advertised it and there was no Internet at the time, so there has never been a web site or presence on the Internet for this business name.

About 6 months ago, I started getting mail for "Shoemaker S. Daughter". I thought it was kind of funny that someone had taken my business name and changed it to look like a person's name. Well, now I found out, after talking to the man yesterday who wanted his shoes repaired, that I am listed in the online yellow pages. Yes, my home phone and address are right there. He was a very nice man and is actually an executive with a marketing company and he told me that I had better contact the yellow pages and have them take my name out of their database and tell them this is a residence.

So, I called the Yellow Pages yesterday and explained the situation and they told me they got my name and phone number from Dunn & Bradstreet!!! I never got this much attention when I had a real business on the Internet and did advertising for it. Anyway, this morning I finally got through to someone at Dunn & Bradstreet and they are supposed to remove this information from their database too. I just don't know who else they gave the information to.

On the funnier side, the man who called yesterday was asking me for recommendations for a shoe repair shop, which I gave him. We got to talking and he wanted to know if I was still making leather goods because he might be interested in some things. I told him no, but thank you for the offer.

Then I found out that the shop I had recommended was the same shop that he had been taking his shoes. They cut the bottom of his shoe where it looked like they were going to put half soles on but caught their mistake. When he questioned them about it, they denied doing it, so he didn't want to go back. All of this I can understand, except his next question. He wanted to know just how hard it could possibly be to repair his shoes himself and put half soles on his own shoes. He wanted to know exactly what type of equipment he would need.

Unless you have been in the back of a shoe repair shop, you cannot imagine what a stupid question this is. The equipment is VERY large, VERY heavy, and requires a lot of training on it so that you don't cut off several fingers and/or put a very large cycle shaped needle through your hand. In other words, it is not for the faint of heart. And, the machines are extremely expensive and not something you could just slip into the corner of your family room.

I explained all of this and then he wanted to know how he could just repair the cut on the bottom of his shoe himself. Again, I explained what kind of cement he would need, how long to let it dry, and then how to hammer it down. Then, I made what I thought was a rather obvious suggestion. I said, "Why don't you just take your shoes back to the original shop, talk to the owner/manager, and tell them what happened. I'm sure they would try to make it right."

I guess, since I was a "professional" in the shoe repair business, he thought that sounded like a brilliant idea. He said that is exactly what he was going to do and that he had thoroughly enjoyed talking to me and if I needed any help with getting my name taken out of the databases to let him know.

Where was an executive of a marketing firm around when I actually had an Internet business and needed one. Well, that just goes to show you. It is not always safe to answer your phone, but it can be very interesting. Oh, and by the way, my phone number used to be the fax number for the city building inspectors. And, it is also one digit different from a local restaurant that does a booming take out business.

I never know who is going to be calling - a fax machine, an order for Chinese take out, or someone wanting to have his shoes repaired. I live an interesting life and I don't even have to leave my house.