east valley
Volume 3 Issue 52 Mesa, AZ
July 11, 2021
Mesa store’s boots are made for working BY MELODY BIRKETT Tribune Contributor
I
IN THE BIZ
t took Jay Rivin a long time to realize that Mesa was the place his shoe store should be. At 23 in 1957, he was fresh out of the Navy when he opened JR’s Shoes and Boots in Phoenix, explaining, “From the time I was a little kid, I always wanted my own store.” Now 86, Rivin recalled how he spent six months before he found a location in an empty section of a post office building, partly because “people have to go to the post office and the previous business in that spot – a flower shop – did so well they had to move to a bigger location.” After almost 40 years, Rivin wanted a change so he moved the store to Gilbert when its population hovered around 64,000 – barely a quarter of what it is today. But he didn’t have much success there and wondered what he would do until a man came in looking for a pair of high-top Nike sneakers in a size 13. Turned out that after Rivin measured the boy’s foot, he needed a size 15. “At that time, I had racks of work shoes on display,” Rivin recalled. The customer was so impressed he told his boss – who worked for the City of Mesa and was in charge of requisitioning work boots for employees. Eventually, the city started doing business with him. “Every assumption I made about goPublic Notices ............... page 2 © Copyright, 2021 East Valley Tribune
JR’s Shoes and Boots owners Seth and Aliza Rosenberg stand behind store founder Jay Rivin, who at 86 recalls setting up the store in Phoenix as a young man before relocating years later to Gilbert. The Rosenbergs moved it to Mesa when they took over the store. (Melody Birkett/ Tribune contributor)
ing into Gilbert about fitting out children, about selling sneakers, about selling cowboy boots was totally wrong,” Rivin said. “The work shoes, which I didn’t even think about, turned out to be the key ingredient.” Several years ago, Rivin broke his hip and turned the business over to Aliza and Seth Rosenberg, who moved the store last (USPS 004-616) is published weekly
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September to a location near Dobson Road and Main Street in Mesa. “Part of Jay’s success is not only the loyal customers but we continue his tradition,” said Aliza. “You come in, you get a joke, you get a candy bar because it takes a while to get the right shoes. You sit down and have a drink. We talk. We find out exactly what the customer needs. Subscriptions are $26 for 2 years, $14 for one year. Periodicals postage paid at Phoenix, AZ 85026.
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