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A half-century tradition of shining service in downtown Seattle

Nordstrom's shoe-shining family keeps feet looking neat. #k5evening

SEATTLE — For nearly 50 years, customers have been coming to the Nordstrom flagship store's lower level looking for a shine and finding a friend.

"These things are gonna be like glass," shoeshiner Brent Perkins tells a customer as he applies the finishing touch. 

"A little treat for your shoes."

Perkins' father, Morgan, started this business back in the early 70s.

"There was a shoeshine stand at Nordstrom, and there was no shoeshiner," Perkins said.

Morgan lobbied the store's management.

"'Hey, would you entertain having a shoeshine man full time, the likes of which you've never seen?' And they said, 'Let's try it.'"

The elder Perkins retired a decade ago, and Brent picked up where dad left off.

"And then I grew to like it as I got older and I realized the value of this place," he said. 

For just five bucks, a pair of shoes gets a new lease on life. New friendships are free. 

"It's a great place for people to come and stop, and we catch up with them, we get to know their families."  

"So how's your day?" he asks a woman who's just hopped up onto the shoeshine seat.

And the conversation begins.

"I've got two older sisters and an older brother..."

The business has changed over the years, attracting more and more female customers looking to spruce up their footwear, reconditioning sneakers, and other less-formal shoes, and surviving a pandemic lockdown when business dropped to zero.

"I feel good," Perkins said. "I feel really good. People are coming back."

"It's always about people," Perkins explained. "There's value in that."

He finishes up with another customer and admires the final product.

"If I make them any shinier, they will combust. They'll actually explode," he jokes.

Brent's last day shining is Thursday, August 15.

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