South Pasadena dance shop stays en pointe, proving small businesses have big community impacts
While many small businesses struggle to keep their doors open, a dance shop in South Pasadena has been staying strong, serving customers for the past 50 years.
The Red Shoes store has been helping generations of dancers, from tiny first-timers to principal ballerinas, and the owner is getting ready to pass the torch on to the next generation.
Alice McIntosh's granddaughter Lily gently fits a young dancer into a pair of ballet shoes. It's a moment Lily knows by heart, because she grew up at the shop. "I now have friends, I'm in my 30s, bringing their kids here," she said.
For decades, this tiny dance shop has been more than just a store; it's been a rite of passage, where dreams begin.
It all started 50 years ago when McIntosh, now in her 80s, says she got fed up taking her daughter to the only men's shoe store in the San Gabriel Valley.
"I bought a building in Old Town for $17,000, which I had this little bit of money saved, and I put it down for a building, and I opened The Red Shoes," McIntosh said. "I am impulsive."
It was an impulsive leap that turned into a lifelong calling. "I am here six days a week," she said.
As big retailers moved in, online shopping took over, and even during a global pandemic, McIntosh never closed her doors.
"We had Nordstrom, started selling dancewear, and it took all of our business away. We had COVID, we had the internet, which was the worst," McIntosh said.
But for the dancers, the answer to how The Red Shoes store survived is clear: it's the irreplaceable experience.
"You can get things online and they look great online, and then you're like, 'what is this,' or it's like not the right size, but coming in person, you can like really get a sense of what you want,"____________And that personal touch has shaped careers.
As Lily now prepares to carry on her grandmother's legacy by taking over the shop, the mission remains the same: to keep dancers on their toes and keep this community on its feet.
