 |
Healthy feet are happy feet at Mast Shoes |
|
“The staff at Mast really know and understand how to fit shoes, a rarity today,” reads a comment from Mark Klein, an Ann Arbor podiatrist (foot doctor), on the Mast Shoes website. In fact, the first three testimonials posted on the site (www.mastshoes.com) do not come from typical customers but healthcare professionals who have come to rely on the store for serving their patients’ footwear needs.
Over the years, Mast Shoes has cultivated close professional relationships with the area’s podiatrists, orthopedic surgeons and those who work with diabetes patients, for whom foot health can be a serious medical concern. As a result, the store now has a database of more than 350 health professionals who refer people to Mast. “It started informally and gradually built over the years through word of mouth,” explained Molly Mast, the third generation of Masts to work at the store. “A doctor would hear good things about us from patients, or see the result of properly fitted footwear from our store, and would refer other patients. We became known as the store to go to in Ann Arbor for extra attention and expertise when it comes to precise fitting and understanding foot issues.” Molly’s grandparents, Walter and Helen Mast, opened the store in downtown Ann Arbor in 1942. The second generation, brothers Greg and Tom Mast, now own the store, each having worked in the family business for more than 30 years. In recent years, the store has become more proactive in maintaining and building its relationship with the healthcare community. Molly credits that effort to long-time store manager William Pemberton, who has come up with several ways to take that informal relationship a notch higher. The store newsletter produces a special edition just for healthcare providers twice a ear, informing them of store events, new or seasonal products and issues in foot health. Discounts to health professionals and to their referrals also help build business. The store has become a hub of information for the area’s foot health community. It hosts educational or social events three times a year, inviting local foot health professionals who enjoy the opportunity to network and socialize among colleagues. At some events, shoe representatives meet with healthcare providers to demonstrate new innovations in comfort shoes, insoles and orthotic devices. Furthering the store’s reputation in the healthcare community, Molly became a certified pedorthist through intensive training at the Eneslow Pedorthic Institute in New York last year. That training makes Mast Shoes Ann Arbor’s only shoe store with a board-certified pedorthist on staff. “A pedorthist is to a foot doctor what a pharmacist is to other doctors,” Molly explained. We take a doctor’s ‘prescription’—guidelines regarding what kind of footwear a client needs—and we fill it by finding the appropriate and best-fitting shoe, or modifying the closest match.” She regularly consults with other Mast Shoes associates regarding evaluating proper footwear for customers.
“People want comfortable shoes, but they also want something stylish,” Molly said. “While we’re not primarily a fashion shoe store, we try to balance the needs for a comfortable shoe with our customers’ desire for attractive footwear.” Voted best Calling the staff dedicated is no exaggeration—Mast’s full-time employees average over 20 years each in the comfort shoe industry, and almost all employees are full-time. With such a loyal and experienced team, management takes its time training new staff to meet its high levels of expertise and customer service. “We don’t just train a new person for a few weeks and turn him loose on the sales floor,” explained Greg. “A new employee will train with our experienced staff for months, and perhaps take as much as a year to become fully qualified to serve our customers.” High and low tech The store, however, doesn’t sell shoes online. “It goes against everything we stand for,” explained Molly. “I have no idea why anyone who is concerned with proper fit and comfort would buy shoes online,” Molly replied simply when asked about the current increase in online shoe sales. Despite its professionally designed website, Mast Shoes remains fairly “low tech.” There’s no computer in the store, and inventory is managed “the old fashioned way,” with key employees keeping track of ordering for several brands of shoes. Molly wouldn’t speculate on future plans to add a computer system. She points out that the store’s system “has been working well for more than 60 years.” Their commitment to traditional systems does not mean, however, that they miss opportunities to save on operating costs. The store has used MRA’s discount shipping program for 18 months, and has recently switched to a more affordable PPO plan for its employee health plan. For a while, the store operated three locations—two downtown and a third at Westgate shopping center. But the downtown locations made less sense, especially because downtown parking became increasingly difficult. The store’s customers often deal with mobility problems and greatly preferred the easy access of the shopping center location. Consolidation into the single Westgate location made sense not because of stagnant sales, but because customers preferred it. “We listened to our customers,” said Tom Mast. “Always a good idea.” This article was written by Amy Buttery, Michigan Retailer staff writer. |
The
65-year-old shoe store in Ann Arbor has found a solid niche in “comfort
shoes.” Its customer base includes people with foot problems and
those who simply place a high premium on comfort in footwear.
Molly
enjoys both the technical and the artistic challenges of her job. The
variety of the problems she is asked to solve each day keep the job interesting.