How does that famous James Brown song go again? “This is a man’s world, but it wouldn't be nothing, nothing, without a woman or a girl."

Meet Lorena Agolli, the female cobbler dominating the Toronto shoe game with her shop, Sole Survivor. Being a cobbler in this day and age is not a popular career choice; it is meticulous, labour intensive, and time consuming. How did her career choice come about? How did it grow from an internship into a full-on start-up business? What were her fears in deciding to embark on this business venture and how did she face them? We had so many questions we needed answered.

“I think that the moment you let go of that fake fear, you make up your mind and things just happen,” Lorena said, describing the steps that lead her to where she is today. A leader in her field and a role model for other young female cobblers, she coyly adds, “I don’t say fake it till you make it. I say fake it till you believe it.”

We sat down with Lorena to get to know more about this confident young woman.

What motivated you to be your own boss?

I was working at Urban Outfitters while I was apprenticing with Katie [previous owner of Sole Survivor and mentor], and I pretty much didn’t have a life for three months. And I would go before and after work, on my days off, I would ask her [if I could] stay in the evening. I’d work on my own shoes--that way, if anything went wrong, I didn’t care.

I wasn’t satisfied with my day job. I just had to quit, and for a year, I took it upon myself to learn how to make shoes on the side. Then I learned the craft, because with Katie, I only learned how to repair shoes. So that was another game.

What really pushed me to take over was that Katie decided to close Sole Survivor down and I was devastated because I had just found something that really spoke to me. And it was now a part of me. I felt as though I was lost. I kept asking myself, “What do I do now?” I remember it being a very emotional weekend. It just so happened that I ended up having a very strong-female-type weekend, because I saw a Frida Kahlo exhibition where I remember stopping in front of a painting of Frida and I just started balling in front of everyone. I remember being so drawn to the painting. It kinda gave me a sense of strength. That’s when I realized that even if I didn’t know how I was going to do it, I was set on buying the business. I don’t know how I pulled it off but here we are.

That’s an amazing story. It’s so funny how things fall in line sometimes.

Totally. I think that the moment you let go of that fake fear, you make up your mind and things just happen. I didn’t even have my first and last month’s rent when I took over the business and I remember just sitting there and being like, “Okay, I own this space now. What do I do?” Then slowly all these people started looking up our business and we became so busy that I didn’t even have to worry about money. It was really blessed, you know?

Just speaking with you, it’s easy to see that you radiate an amazing level of self-confidence, on top of the fact that you took on a job that someone was unfortunately giving up on. Where do you think that this confidence and adventurous personality comes from?

Honestly, I totally believe that’s the way I was brought up. You know how parents always tell their kids that they’re the best? My mom would tell me, “You know you’re beautiful, but just know that there are other girls who just might be more beautiful.” I think that there are enough people in the world to support you, so I am not really worried about the competition out there. I’m just giving my clients all of me, and I think that people can feel it when they come into the shop. You can see the style, the aesthetics that we have. You can feel the vibe as soon as you step into the shop, and because of the open concept, you can literally observe me while I’m working.

-Lorena Agolli

We’re not sure if you realize it, but in your own way you are kind of a groundbreaker. Have you taken a moment to indulge in the fact that you are a strong, positive role model?

I think I realized I was really doing something positive when I got an email from a young female high school student who was about to graduate and wanted to contact us, thinking that our shop actually was a big company. She wasn’t even sure if the email would reach me and started it off, “If you could please forward this to her [me].” She wanted to know how I knew that I wanted to be creative with my hands and was looking for guidance from an experienced cobbler. Another story that’s stuck with me was a girl that saw me on an MTV five-minute segment. She didn’t live in the city but she came all the way to see me and just to say, “You are an inspiration to me.” That just blew my mind and it’s crazy that I’ve inspired people. It’s very humbling.

Would you say that being a business owner is a result of your confidence and willingness to try out new things?

Before this started, I wasn’t myself. I was very depressed; a lot of bad things had happened in my life, and this kind of reminded me that I never want to go back to that. So I think that I’m not looking back and I’m just moving forward. You just have to take those steps that you’ve never taken before. Everyone thought that I was crazy for opening up a second location within a year of owning the space. It was meant to be, the way it all went down, I’m just going to keep going and I’m gonna let it grow naturally in the direction it wants to. I’m just the engine that’s going to make it happen.

What are you the most proud of in your business?

The extension and the fact that I have found other females who want to learn this trade. I feel very proud of that and very touched, because there is a lot of talented girls out there who don’t have the chance to express themselves creatively in certain trades because they’re still very male-dominated. I want to let them feel what it’s like to really work with their hands and then see that finished product. That’s what I’m really proud of.

We assume that being a first-time business owner can come with a series of setbacks. How have you handled these setbacks or do you ever face skepticism about being young or being a woman? How do you respond to those elements?

I say that my work speaks for itself. I get it: I’m probably the youngest cobbler in the city, maybe even Ontario, and some people may think that I’m very inexperienced and what not, but I just tell them to give me the chance to work. That’s really how customers come back because I’m willing to learn more all the time and I don’t think that I know everything, but once I do start working on a pair of shoes or a jacket, I really focus on them and I make sure that it’s better when they come back, so I really let the work speak for itself.

What advice would you like to share with our readers who’d like to venture into a field that is not typically open to their gender, their race, or whatever I.D. markers they may have?

I would say, whatever you do, don’t follow the trends. I know it’s very hard not to. Even when I was looking for inspiration on the web, I ended up going on to people’s blogs, and I ended up doing things that other people were doing and it didn’t seem like it was my thing. It didn’t fulfill me. Do what suits you, do what makes you feel good. You know, just because cut-off shorts are in fashion doesn’t mean that you’ll look good in them, right?

-Lorena Agolli

(laughs) A question that we’ve asked everybody is how do you think that confidence has played a role in your life and your career?

Damn. People call me feisty, I’m definitely a strong person. I say what’s on my mind. I’m very honest in the sense that I don’t talk behind people’s backs and I think that in this business, I tell the truth about why it’s falling behind. I think that people can sense this honesty and I think that they like that when they come in. I don’t know--does that answer your question? I’m a fighter. I got Sole Survivor as my name. You know, I’m just out here, surviving.