Inventor makes shoe-shining easier

The Associated Press

Published: November 26, 2007

But he also decided to do something about it.

Neal, who taught mathematics for 20 years at the University of Oklahoma, has turned his attention to inventing. He's filed a patent for his Shoe Horse, which he says is a sturdy, portable, only-of-its-kind shoe polishing stand. He chose Shawnee to test-market his invention and said he hopes it will make shoe shining easier and more pertinent.

"This holds the shoe so you don't have to,” Neal said by his kiosk inside Shawnee Mall. "I was content using it to polish my own shoes at home, but I wanted to share it with other people. I hope to motivate more people to take care of their shoes because this makes it so simple.”

Neal's drive to create a device that would make shoe shining easier began in the early '90s. He applied his mathematician's mind to the process: creating axioms, then working within those parameters.

He knew the shoe stand had to hold in place a shoe of any size and style, be foldable and stay upright. Eventually, students in the engineering department at OU created a prototype, then Neal continued fine-tuning it.

Originally, it featured a sawhorse type of design for stability, but he knew it needed to be smaller. So he worked more and, in a nod to the strength of a sawhorse, called it the Shoe Horse.

The result is what he's been marketing for the last few weeks.

The Shoe Horse is designed for the user to sit down and polish shoes. A rod is inserted in the shoe, and springs apply pressure to hold the shoe in place. It accommodates men's or women's shoes of any size, and an additional attachment will hold cowboy boots in place.

Even vigorous buffing with a cloth won't budge the shoe from its perch, he said, and his demonstration holds true. With the loosening of a wing nut, the Shoe Horse folds down and can be slid under a bed or into a closet, he said.

When people polish their shoes the "old-fashioned” way, they usually have the use of only one hand because the other is holding the shoe still, Neal said. Sometimes the polish ends up on the person's lap or clothing, and the whole experience can be a frustration, he said. But the Shoe Horse holds the shoe tight and at sitting level.

All parts of the Shoe Horse are made in Oklahoma, and Neal said he intentionally chose the high-quality route for its components. The Shoe Horse features steel tubing with a tough powder coating, laser-cut steel plates and quality springs.

It even has the appearance of a mathematician's mind: a right triangle is visible in the design, along with a full circle and quarter-circles.

"Everything we create is mathematical,” Neal said. "There's always been a question of whether mathematics is invented or discovered. But a lot of mathematicians think of themselves as inventors. Mathematicians create axioms, or statements, and ask what those axioms imply.”

The Shoe Horse is available at a kiosk in Shawnee Mall, near the Dillard's entrance, during regular mall hours, and Neal is happy to give demonstrations. With every purchase, he gives away a container of shoe polish and a polish cloth. Shoe Horse polish is creamier than other polishes, he said, and is made by a century-old shoe polish factory in Los Angeles.

In the future, Neal said he'd like to expand to other malls and develop an international patent. He's also in negotiations with the Home Shopping Network.

Angie Nichols, marketing manager at Shawnee Mall, said the mall is happy to be the launch site for Neal's invention.

"We love local merchants,” she said. "We think it helps us have unique items to offer to the community.”

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