Brookfield/Elm Grove Monthly

By Chris Bennett Special to The Freeman BROOKFIELD — All Jim Sajdak does — all he has ever done — is sell footwear. "I got started right at the beginning with my mom and my dad," Sajdak said. "My dad was Stan. They started the business back in 1950. "I've literally grew up in the business. I've been in it all my life, in some form or another." Sajdak and family own three locations of Stan's Fit For Your Feet. Stores are located in Glendale, Greenfield and in Brookfield at 17155 W. Bluemound Road. The empire also includes New Balance Milwaukee stores in Greenfield and at the Brookfield Stan's location. The Brookfield location of Stan's opened in 1982. The Brookfield New Balance store opened about 12 years ago, Sajdak said. Stan and Emerence Sajdak — Jim's parents — opened the first store, Stan's Bootery, on South 27th Street and Okla- homa Avenue in Milwaukee in 1950. At a time when locally owned shoe stores are becoming scarce, Stan's is preparing to celebrate its 65th year of business. The tenets of that business are simple. "It continues to be quality and unique products that we continue to provide, and also the service that we provide," Sajdak said. "With every pair of shoes, you get one of us." Sajdak said the shoe business requires personal service. "There's very few people you actually encounter as closely," Sajdak said. "We have that opportunity to work very closely with our customers. We really get close with our customers." Sajdak said buying shoes used to be a more intimate experience. Big box retail stores started dominating retail, and customer service fell on the chopping block in favor of lower prices. Chain shoe stores also became popular. "I think, as (my) dad developed his business, there was a lot of competition back then," Sajdak said. "A lot of chain stores. He had to be different. In order to differentiate yourself, you have to have different products. You have to have a different array of sizes and widths." Stan's evolved and thrived by offering a high-level of customer service and products unseen in most outlets. "That's really a hallmark of what we do, and I think it has kept generations coming back to our stores all these years," Sajdak said. "We're a very wel- come alternative to the retail clutter that's out there." The products carried by Stan's unseen in most stores are shoes on the extreme in foot size or width. "I remember a guy walking across the Brookfield Plaza in the parking lot bare- foot, because he didn't have any shoes," Sajdak said. "He was a size 18." Sajdak said he sold the gentleman a pair of New Balance shoes. Sajdak said he once took a call from a customer in Australia who said he found Stan's on the Internet and said his mother needed size 13 shoes. He ordered every pair in the store upon hearing Stan's could help. "These stories are common for us," Sajdak said. "It's really maybe uncom- mon for a lot of shoe stores, but it's not uncommon for us." Sajdak's investment in Stan's is anoth- er reason the stores can offer such exceptional service. Not every shoe store keeps pedorthists on staff, or is able to fill doctor's prescriptions related to footwear. A pedorthist, according to the Pedor- thic Footcare Association, is a profes- sional trained to properly size and fit footwear to manage and treat conditions of the foot, ankle and lower extremities. Sajdak said he employs five pedorthists. If all goes according to plan, Stan's will continue employing pedorthists and stocking extreme sizes and sending shoes to Australia for years to come. Saj- dak's four children are involved in the business, and he is optimistic for anoth- er 50 years. "We tend to look at this very positive- ly," Sajdak said. "Otherwise we would not be in retail. We're kind of glass-half- full guys." 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Call 262-443-3950 FREE No Obligation Consultation • WalkinTubsOfWisconsin.com "Be sure to call before you fall." 2 4 6 6 9 3 0 1 1 We also sell and install Grab Bars :$/.,1%$7+78%6 With Purchase and Installation of a Walk-In Bath Tub or Shower. $75.00 discount on installed Easy Bath Step Insert. Present at time of estimate. Expires December 31, 2015. Not valid with other offers or coupons. 2 4 5 9 7 9 0 0 2 2 4 6 6 9 3 0 1 4 By Katherine Michalets Freeman Staff TOWN OF BROOKFIELD — Sporting a tattoo of a barber shop pole on his forearm and speaking with a tough-guy Brooklyn accent, Charlie Bian- co has an eye for style and a head for business. Bianco opened Charlie's East Coast Hair Designs at 285 N. Janacek Road five years ago, although he has been cutting hair for much longer. Bianco is a third-generation barber and grew up above his grandfa- ther's barbershop. At the age of 12, he was already working in the shop owned by his Italian immigrant family in Brooklyn. By age 25, Bianco said he was burned out on the hair cutting and styling business. After get- ting a degree in marketing, he found himself in real estate, which brought him to the Mil- waukee area. When the real estate market tanked around 2008, Bianco said, he fell back on his salon skills. "I always fall back on this. I ride the economy," Bianco said. While Bianco may have "fall- en back" on his barbershop skills, he is passionate about running a smooth operation that gives clients a top-notch experience. "It's a lifestyle — if you are going to do it right, it's a life changer," he said. "If I am going to do something, (I) have to be all in." Bianco emphasizes educat- ing the stylists, of which there are currently 14, at Charlie's. They are selected because they see working in a salon as a career and not simply a job. He said the formal education for stylists has changed to be more science-focused and goes over health and safety. "We want to look for the peo- ple who will fuel our positive passion," Bianco said. To build his clientele base, Bianco strives to create a con- nection with the customers from the greeting they receive when they walk through the door until they are addressed as they leave. New clients get a tour of the salon and everyone is offered a drink. He also implemented technology to send text reminders for appointments and follow-up surveys about how a person's experience was. "It's all about repeat busi- ness and being happy every single time," Bianco said. Franciscan Healthcare connection It was his approach to busi- ness and the positive reviews posted online by clients that prompted Jennifer Thomas, operations coordinator at Franciscan Healthcare-Fran- ciscan Woods, to see if Bianco would be interested in running the senior living facility's salon. She said when she spoke with Bianco, he was intrigued about the opportunity and informed her about the com- munity service he provides. Charlie's East Coast Hair Designs took over manage- ment and staffing of the salon in Franciscan Woods in March. Bianco said he hired a stylist specifically for that position because he knew someone spe- cial was needed there. Gabby Torres, he said, has been great with the senior clientele, some of whom have dementia and many who are in wheelchairs. Torres brings warmth to the position, he said. The appointments are made through the main Char- lie's salon. "It has been excellent," Thomas said of working with Bianco. "We wanted someone who is personable and could connect to our demographic and population." It's also been good marketing for Charlie's, Bianco said, because family members of the senior residents or staff at Franciscan Woods now seek the salon's services on Janacek Road. Bianco likes to give back to the community and partners up annually with a group of Brookfield businesses to col- lect food items for the food pantry in November or items in recognition of Child Abuse Prevention in April. This past year, items went to the Women's Center of Waukesha. The food drive for the New Berlin Food Pantry will kick off Nov. 15 with food bins at area businesses, including Charlie's. Also in November, Bianco will open the East Coast Medi- cal Spa inside Charlie's East Coast Hair Designs, which will offer the services of Dr. Bruce Cardone, who owns Vena. Ser- vices at East Coast Medical Spa will include laser hair removal, medical facials and non-invasive liposuction. While Bianco has a lot of paperwork to keep him busy as he grows his business, he still finds time to work on the floor, spending about 45 hours per week working directly with clients. www.charlieseastcoasthairde- signs.com Email: kmichalets@conleynet.com A head for business Charlie's East Coast Hair Designs emphasizes customer service Submitted photo The entire family is involved at Stan's Fit For Your Feet. Pictured, back row, left to right are David Sajdak, Ben Sadjak and Andy Sadjak. In the front row are Megan Sajdak, Susan Sadjak and Jim Sajdak. SOLE SURVIVOR Stan's Fit for Your Feet rolls with changes in industry Charles Auer/Freeman Staff Charlie Bianco in Charlie's East Coast Hair Designs.

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