Jobs & Careers: Transforming old shoes with LUXSOLE

With just one pair of shoes, Alexia Allison was able to transform her life and start a thriving business.

Having been invited to an event, Allison said she was reluctant to go as the only shoes she had was the one she had already worn to her graduation ball. Fearing that she would be teased about it, she decided to make some adjustments to the shoes, to make it look brand new.

“My mother bought me a pair of shoes for my graduation ball. The following year I was invited to a party and I had no shoes to wear other than the one pair my mother bought me for the ball. Everyone saw me in it already and I was sad and really didn’t want to wear it. I decided to take the shoes and make it look different by using a blouse that was too big for me, to kinda wrap the shoes. That’s basically how the idea came about,” she told THE STAR.

After starting her career in the logistics field, Allison decided that revamping shoes was more her calling.

She officially launched LUXSOLE in 2017, but kept her 9 to 5 in order to offset costs.

Currently, Allison works with various shoe types – high heels, crepes, sneakers, men’s formal shoes, crocs, male and female slippers.

Even though she is based primarily in Kingston, Allison added that customers from all over are able to send in their old shoes for them to be revamped.

With her revamping business now taking off, the 25-year-old said although she has not yet given up her 9 to 5, she is hoping to one day make LUXSOLE her main source of income.

She is also hoping to open physical locations islandwide to further expand her business.

“My advice to young people is to go for it, it’s a journey, lots of ups and downs, but stay focused, develop your skills and keep learning,” she said.