There's no business like shoe-business '“ Boston footwear cleaning venture opens to overwhelming demand

Fresh Kicks has already expanded into Lincoln after testing the market in Boston.

The operation provides cleaning, protection, and customisation of men’s, women’s and children’s footwear.

It is a service run by Sneaker Boys, a footwear business set up by Darren Overton, 51, his son Kye, 26, and Kye’s friends, Scott Maskell, 30, and brother Jamie, 28, which also includes an accessories arm.

They launched together with the opening of a shop in Pen Street, in November.

Now, based on the popularity of the Fresh Kicks service, the foursome have expanded into Lincoln with the opening of a shop in City Square.

Of the public’s reaction to their testing of the market last year, Darren said: “We were overwhelmed by the response. We were very busy. There’s a requirement. No one else is doing it on the high street.”

The service, which started life as a something Scott and Jamie provided for friends (and initially with just a focus on trainers), has attracted rave reviews.

Darren likens the appeal of Fresh Kicks to that of a car wash, in that it restores an item – often an expensive one – to its former glory while saving the owner the time and hassle of doing so.

He said: “They feel like it’s having a new pair and it freshens them up for whatever occasion they want them for.”

Having identified what they feel to be an unmet need on the high street, they hope that Fresh Kicks will become a familiar presence in towns and cities and to this end have already begun advertising for franchise opportunities.

“We do feel we have found a niche in the market,” Darren said.