UNIQUE EXPERIENCE AT SUNA SHOES
Opened in 1984 as the first store in a now established empire of seven stores, Suna Shoes Toowoomba has developed a fantastic business from humble beginnings and owners Sheree Waldock and Andrew Burns are thrilled.
“Our Toowoomba store has an amazing vibe which is created by our wonderful team, who constantly strive to create the culture we are known for, and our loyal, fun customers,” Sheree says.
“Our customers are always in the forefront of our mind in everything that we do, from our buying and designing to our marketing and staff training.”
The name Suna came from Andrew’s mother’s maiden name. Andrew and Sheree bought the Toowoomba store from her in 2003 upon her retirement.
“We love Toowoomba. We have seen many changes over the years but there are very few towns with such an amazing main street. The strong attraction of stores with independent and national retailers sharing the street coupled with new, exciting coffee shops and restaurants are a huge draw card,” Sheree says.
Venturing into Europe to source from Italy, Portugal and Spain, the brands to look out for at Suna are Red Ginger, Sweet Pippi, Keara Hamiltyn and Goanna. Suna also offers major brands such as Birkenstock, Skechers, Rieker, Zeta, Ecco and Ara among others.
“We choose our own leathers, own heel heights, different textures and finishes. We do things like adding extra comfort and padding to ensure our customers have the best possible footwear ranges,” Sheree adds.
There’s a uniqueness to their customer that the two notice.
“The Suna customer is not looking for a pair of ‘disposable’ shoes that you wear once or twice and throw out. She knows that a good fitting, quality shoe will last for many years,” Sheree says.
“We feel very strongly about maintaining good, honest service and a great product mix. Andrew and I continue to work hard to create an innovative company culture and feel very honoured to have a wonderful, strong, motivated sales team as we are forever evolving.”