In 1956 when Ben Porcheddu's Italian parents opened a shoe shop in Wollongong, they appreciated that quality customer service was essential to the survival of the business.

Sixty-four years later and consumer behaviours have changed.

Customers initially bought quality shoes out of necessity and need but have now been buying cheap imports as "fashion accessories".

Customer attitudes have also changed.

More and more people have come into Mr Porcheddu's shop looking at their phones, not looking up and not saying hello.

While he acknowledged that he may be old-fashioned, he has found that behaviour shocking and has had enough.

"We've always given great customer service; we've been taking care of customers for 64 years," Mr Porcheddu said.

"If we didn't do that from day one then obviously we wouldn't have been around for so long.

"Before, we would talk about the odd customer, the difficult customer — we'd have maybe three a year and you'd remember them — but in the last few years, it was constant, it was every day."

Ben Porcheddu grew up with a shoemaking workshop at the back of his house. This machine is nearly 100 years old. ( ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss )

Immigrants behind quality footwear

According to this shoemaker, Australian-made shoes used to be really good and very hardy.

"In the old days, people would come in and buy just what they needed," Mr Porcheddu said.

"They were always worried about quality — quality was priority. Price didn't come into it and there was usually a strong Australian-made component.

"We used to keep mainly Australian shoes and some Italian."

This sole stitcher originated in the USA. The Porcheddus have been using the machine since the 1970s. ( ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss )

This meant there was also a demand for services like shoe repairs.

"When we did repairs we could get all our components because they were Australian-made — heels, leathers, stitching — everything used to be made here," Mr Porcheddu said.

"Now it's basically all imports."

Shop shuts due to lack of interest

Recently Mr Porcheddu made the decision to close his store.

Wollongong in the 1970s had a thriving shopping centre. ( Supplied: Wollongong City Library )

"It used to be like a meeting place here; we would make coffee for customers," he said.

"My mum and dad both worked here but it was more of a social event than anything.

"My dad, who made wine and kept it below the counter, would share it with male customers.

"It's changed from that to competing with other retailers and online."

Back in the day, shoe shops only sold shoes and shoe-related items.

Then clothing stores started selling shoes, and department stores started getting more aggressive with shoe sales, and the industry went from being specialised to competing against a global market place.

Family traditions were bonding rituals

Reflecting on his own experience, Mr Porcheddu remembere the involved process of buying shoes, with both his parents and other staff attending to customers.

Mr Porceddu's shop features artefacts used for nearly 70 years, like this bench made for children. ( ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss )

Shopping for a child's first pair of shoes was an experience honoured by both retailer and customer.

As a youth he would do fittings and make coffee, which his mum would drink with the customers' grandparents.

The process was regimental and ritualised.

The ritual often involved the homemade wine kept below the counter, or fresh coffee, supplied with sweet Italian cake.

"The grandmother would come in with the daughter, and they would buy the child's first pair of shoes," Mr Porcheddu said.

"[She] would supervise as the child's foot was measured, and the mother and the child would be well-behaved.

"The grandmother would pick the colour and the style and pay for the purchase, and that would be it — whether the other people involved liked it or not was bad luck.

"The grandmother bought them and that was a tradition, a ritual."

'Children bouncing off walls'

Children's sport shoes exploded onto the market in the mid-1980s.

"Now the mother wants her child wearing flashy sports shoes," Mr Porcheddu said.

"It went from being a proper shoe to a sports shoe and the children were bouncing off the walls — the grandmother was no longer needed.

"Children were no longer being fitted, parents were just interested in the look, and children did whatever they wanted.

"Let's just say it became an undisciplined experience for us."

Mr Porcheddu said he knows the benefits of wearing good shoes, especially for growing feet, and believes the grandmothers knew it too.

Children's feet grow so quickly they need measuring every three months for new shoes. ( ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss )

"Now shoes are more of a fashion accessory," he said.

After a lifetime in the shoe business Mr Porcheddu has a few highlights and following in his father's footsteps is one of them.

"Learning from my father all the tricks, and bits and pieces of how to make shoes … he was tough person but that was good because it made me learn a lot," he said.

As for low points, Mr Porcheddu said: "I've had shoes thrown at me! That's happened a couple of times."

"I can laugh about it now but seeing people's anger over something minimal escalate to violence isn't funny."