The Son Also Rises |
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| Article published in footwearPLUS An Earnshaw Group Publication FEBRUARY 2003 VOLUME 14. ISSUE 2 |
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So when he and his wife Jerilyn decided to start a business in order to spend more time together, a shoe store was a natural decision. In 1979 they opened Footprints, a
420-square-foot shop specializing in women's hard-to-find sizes. In the beginning. David kept his job with the
state, helping with the business at night, while Jerilyn ran the store during
the day. He gave his wife three days training in shoe sales and then asked his mother to help with the operations. "My mother, who was disabled and hadn't worked in 18 years, came into
the business. Her disability totally disappeared within the four walls of the store," he says. Eventually his father joined in the effort along with both of Jerilyn's parents. Scott and his brother were always on call. And through dedicated family perseverance, Footprints grew in size seven times, slowly expanding its walls as neighboring shops closed and the odd space here and there became available.It's this haphazard maze of rooms that shapes many of Scott's childhood memories. But despite the hours spent as a stock boy, running to help out the family after school and on weekends, Scott still chose to pursue a career as a chiropractor. The summer after he graduated with a degree in health sciences and prepared to enter graduate school, Footprints finally ran out of space to expand and had to relocate--and the childhood memories took on a whole new meaning. "The opportunity to continue this kind of family tradition was very enticing," he says. "And I could see a role for me, a way for me to contribute to the growth of the store with the move to the new location. It would have been exciting enough to continue what my parents had achieved, but the challenge of taking it to the next level inspired me to take the leap from the career path I had been on and try something totally different." Scott dropped out of chiropractic school and decided to give the family store a six-month test period. It only took a day for him to realize that it was his calling. He is now vice president of the 30,000-square-foot super store that continues to carry hard-to-find women's sizes, along with a vast selection of men's, children's and orthopedic shoes, running the gamut in style. "As we grew, we began to carry more of a mainstream offering, and now we draw customers from all across the state and out of the state," Scott says. Despite Footprints' mammoth proportions, it has consistently maintained a mom-and-pop vibe, partially because the entire time the store grew in size, David hired new employees one at a time, nurturing each relationship and encouraging their family members to join the company as well. "The family business represents a dream that we had and it represents the family itself. It was extremely important to the grand- parents, and our children have watched from its inception so it's very meaningful to them," David says. To Scott, these relationships are the guiding force of Footprints. "The emphasis on family, which was initiated by my folks and my grandparents, has translated to employees, each of whom has become part of the family. That's significant both for the staff and for customers," he says. "The importance of a mom-and-pop business is the interaction with customers, assessing what they need and then exceeding their expectations. Having passion for the business and the people." David talks about his staff with a level of pride typically reserved for favorite children. He excitedly rattles off their personal achievements, their degrees, their goals, and hopes that he's been able to have a positive impact on all of their lives. "We have former stock people and sales people who have achieved medical degrees, degrees in geology, dental hygiene-the list of professional achievements is amazing. The experience they get in the store, working with people and understanding the dynamics that go into small businesses today benefit everyone who chooses to learn. What you learn in a shoe store can apply in untold situations in the future," he offers. "You get as much as you put in and you never know where it will take you." Right now, it is taking Scott into new realms of marketing and technology use for the store. "One of Scott's greatest strengths is his inter-personal skills, so one of the first areas I turned over to him was marketing. Reps are his age and he speaks their language, and he knows how to manage electronic media," David says. While David is exultant over his son's role in the company, Scott maintains that his dad is the one with the forward thinking. "He'll tell you that I'm finding new and innovative ways to bring in customers. But he is still the creative genius who continues the innovation of the store," he says. "In terms of coming up with a few of my own ideas-well, that's my responsibility." If history is any indication, Scott won't have any problems coming up with a slew of fresh ideas. After all, he has the entire family behind him. "We didn't anticipate the business becoming what it has-it went way beyond our expectations. Now we have a lot of opportunity for growth and we're not sure where the future will take us." David says. "But it could not have been more rewarding. There was so much togetherness, and involving our children with their grandparents is the greatest legacy we could have given." -KK. |
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