Sole trader Tony a sought-after shoemaker

Fifty five years of shoemaking has resulted in a Ballinasloe businessman becoming one of the country’s most sought-after traders when it comes to specially-made footwear.

At 70, the service that Tony Murphy provides is in great demand and particularly from those who require orthopaedic shoes.

He worked in some of the big name companies in shoemaking over the years but is happy to continue in the profession which he learned as a 15 year old.

Tony designs and manufactures shoes for those requiring orthopaedic footwear and the business has been operating in Ballinasloe for the past 30 years.

It has been a profession that has taken Tony to many parts of the country during his long career in shoemaking.

He took to the craft because of his father Kevin, who, at the age of 97, still offers him advice on a weekly basis.

The Dundalk native has spent most of his life manufacturing shoes and at one time was employed by Dubarry in Ballinasloe.

Tony started off with Clark’s in Dundalk, his home town, as an apprentice designer at the age of 15 and as his knowledge and experience grew he moved to Dublin to join James Winstanley Ltd.

During his time at James Winstanley he won the award for ″the potential bestseller″ shoe design and was presented with a trophy by the then Minister for Industry, David Andrews.

Tony’s passion for shoemaking continued to grow and he moved on to take up a position with Lee Boot in Cork, where he spent five enjoyable years.

He was then head-hunted by Dubarry Shoes in Ballinasloe and came to live in the town in 1977. Tony’s position as Chief Designer took him all over the country and the continent to attend shoe exhibitions and leather merchants.

Tony had always dreamed of opening his own business and, with the encouragement of his wife Ann, he took a leap of faith and decided to set up his own bespoke and orthopaedic footwear business in 1983.

It was located in what was then known as Cullen’s Yard in the heart of Ballinasloe, a place which he decided to make his home.

The business began to expand and Tony developed a loyal client base through his attention to his customer’s needs and his inherent love of his craft.

In the year 2000 Tony and Ann purchased the site and built a permanent new premises from where they continue to work at the moment – they have no plans of retiring.

Tony worked in conjunction with the Health Service Authority making footwear for client’s who had medical cards.

In 2007, as the recession took hold, this contract was rescinded by the HSE and consequentially Tony’s clients were unable to have their footwear made by him.

Tony recalls that this has caused great distress to many of his clients. One of Tony’s clients has not had a pair of shoes that she can wear in seven years.

Tony has loyally been repairing the shoes he made for her in 2007 on a yearly basis.

“This situation illustrates that some decisions made by the Government with the intention of being ‘cost saving’ turn out to be more expensive in the long run, as they have a detrimental effect on the overall health of our clients,” Tony said.