Michigan teen aims to open multiple locations for his shoe store brand
KE Soles at Dearborn's Fairlane Town Center is no ordinary shoe store. The owner of the store
By Faraz Javed, Jon Austin
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DEARBORN, Michigan (WXYZ) — KE Soles at Dearborn’s Fairlane Town Center is no ordinary shoe store.
The owner of the store, Kasem Elkhechen describes the store’s 1000-pair collection as exclusive.
“I try to stay away from anything that people can actually find,” said Elkhechen.
The young businessman is only 15 and manages the 1400-square-foot store along with his family.
“How did you get into selling shoes?” asked 7 Action News.
“Two or three years back, I used to clean shoes, actually, and then when shoes started to get really popular, I started doing pre-owned sneakers. So I would buy used shoes for like 50 to 60, clean it up, and sell it maybe for 100,” said Elkhechen.
When Kasem was 13, he went from selling three pairs of shoes weekly to a dozen pairs daily. In fact, to keep up with demand, Kasem began sourcing shoes from other places.
“So basically, I would sell pre-owned shoes Monday through Friday, and then on Saturday and Sunday, we would have back-to-back events, sometimes I would sell 100 brand new shoes,” said Elkhechen.
During the pandemic, Kasem sold around 800 pairs of shoes. Kasem says his basement was filled with shoes.
“It was really bad, you couldn’t walk. There were shelves everywhere. Especially, new shoes. I was selling new shoes and there would be 300 pairs of new shoes and no box and it was ll over the floor,” said Elkhechen.
“What did your mom say to that?” Asked 7 Action News.
“She actually pushed to open the store because she wanted everything out of the house,” said Elkhechen.
“He first went to clean the shoes, so he took over the laundry room. The whole play area, workout area, couch area was taken over, and then the kitchen area was taken over,” said Saab.
But regardless, mom Raefah Saab is beyond proud of her little boy.
“He doesn’t like to talk about it, but he is giving, he is caring and loves to help anybody in need, and that makes me much more proud than this success,” said Saab.
Meanwhile, Kasem’s next big goal is to open multiple locations and help his employees grow within the company.
“What has this business taught you?” asked 7 Action News.
“Stay humble, 100%” said Elkhechen.”
Meanwhile, Kasem advises young aspiring entrepreneurs, ‘Be true to yourself and be consistent.’
You can follow Kasem’s journey on kesoles.com.
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