Any way you look at it, shoes are big business in Greenwood. That's why it's often jokingly referred to as "The Shoe Capital." But it's certainly no joke.
Today, there are three main family-owned entities in Greenwood that offer up a colorful palette of footwear, and each of those entities has multiple stores, including one downtown and one on Park Avenue. Success is long-standing, and there seems to be enough of a customer base to go around.
So, what gives? The customer, that's what.
"The people of Greenwood have a very unique understanding of shoes," said Anthony Ola, owner of Anthony's Shoes and Ola's Shoes. "They don't necessarily want department store shoes; they want the latest trends, the latest styles.
"It's uncanny the way people of Greenwood appreciate the fashion end of the shoe business. They are not buying out of need; they are buying out of want to enhance their wardrobe."
LoLo Lubiani, corporate officer and overseer of all six Conerly's stores owned by the Malvezzi family of Clarksdale, couldn't agree more.
"It's knowing your market, what your customer base is and trying to stay one step ahead of the latest trends," Lubiani said. "I think local ownership and management with special attention to detail and service means a lot."
The Malvezzi family has six shoe stores that reach across the Delta, including two in Greenwood. The Conerly's chain was started about 40 years ago by Tony Malvezzi and Charlie Conerly, who got into the shoe business after retiring from professional football.
Conerly's in Greenwood opened on the corner of Howard and Market streets 28 years ago. The store has been in its present location, a little farther down on Howard Street, for about 10 years.
Performance Sports, another division of Conerly's, is on Park Avenue.
It opened about six years ago, specializing in more high-end specialty footwear. Conerly's is more family and popular-price oriented.
Lubiani has been with the corporation for almost 30 years, and he also gives high praise to his office manager and ladies shoe buyer, Lina Elfert.
The Goldbergs also have two stores in Greenwood: Goldberg's downtown and The Shoe Gallery on Park Avenue. They also have stores in Indianola and Greenville. Goldberg's was started in 1921 by present owner Mike Goldberg's grandfather, who opened the store as a shoe repair shop. A few years later, Mike's uncle, Harry Goldberg, and his father, Ervin Goldberg, became partners and took over the business. Mike and his brother, Jerome, are now the primary partners in the business.
"My grandfather and uncle were shoe makers. When I took it over 30 years ago, I closed the repair part of the business," said Goldberg.
When he did this, it opened up more space, which was devoted to the then-booming sports industry. The store, which started with about 800 square feet, now boasts almost 6,500 square feet of space. The extra space was filled with athletic merchandise, particularly athletic shoes.
"We were the first account in the entire state to carry the Adidas brand of athletic shoe," Goldberg noted. "Then Nike came begging, and at that point, we just got on the athletic bandwagon."
Goldberg thanks his family predecessors for having the foresight to know what was ahead, and he has followed that principle. He believes that makes his business a success.
"You have to go out there and have an eye for what's about to happen before anyone else does, and that's what my father and grandfather did," Goldberg said. "And that's what we are all about."
Of sharing the shoe business with others in town, Goldberg said he likes it okay.
"I tell my customers they are blessed," Goldberg said. "They are blessed to have the selection. We all help each other, and the people that come here from out of town have a reason to come here."
"It's no secret," said Gail Goldberg, Mike's wife, who works in the Shoe Gallery. "Here are three families who are active in this community in different ways, and we are all actively running these businesses and supporting our families."
The Shoe Gallery opened about six years ago on Park Avenue, and it was designed to hit another market, according to Goldberg.
"We try to be on the leading edge with different choices, and we try to provide some integrity for our customers as well as some vision," Gail added.
Goldberg also said that having this many shoe stores in one town makes Greenwood a step above everyone else.
"You can't find as much anywhere else," Goldberg said. "And as far as the other stores, we feed off each other. We don't see them as our competitors. We see them as our business partners."
Lubiani believes most of his business is local customers, but Ola and Goldberg attribute a great deal of their success to out-of-town customers.
"I would say that 40 percent of our business is from out of town," Ola said.
Ola's was started by Francis and Doris Ola 49 years ago in downtown Greenwood. Anthony's, which is on Park Avenue, opened 15 years ago.
Both stores are owned by the Ola family.
Ola's downtown began with 800 square feet, and its main goal was to offer quality shoes at a good value. After about five years, the space was doubled, and in 1982, the space was increased again to around 3,000 square feet.
"We bought the building next door, enlarged the store, upgraded the interior and upgraded the lines we were carrying," Ola said.
In 1987, the decision was made to expand, and Anthony's opened.
"We wanted to bring a little something different to Greenwood," Ola said. "We wanted to provide merchandise for the customer who wants to be on the cutting edge of fashion. You know, shoes that have a little more character, a little more color. At Anthony's, we try to be a little different."
Thus, the Anthony's slogan: "Always One Step Ahead."
Although there is competition among the different stores, they all recognize that each is really complementary of the other.
"I think we attract so many people because there are choices," Ola said. "We all have our strengths, and each store does something different to please its customers. Each store also has its own identity."
"We complement each other very well," said Lubiani. "We are very fortunate. We do have an abundance of places to buy shoes for a town this size.
"But there are multiple lines of shoes carried by all the stores. And I think location, customer base and loyalty are key," Lubiani continued.
And each of these stores seem to have their fair share of that.
"They will shop," Lubiani said of shoe-buying customers.
"Our downtown store is a very vibrant business, and we have a following that we have built over 49 years," Ola said.
If nothing else, all of the store owners will agree on one thing - the importance of customer service.
