Sarah Deko Has Put Her Sole Into New Business Opened In Pandemic

BRANFORD, CT — As many businesses have survived the pandemic to fully reopen, Sarah Deko decided she would start a brand new business, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Deko, a former longtime Branford hair salon owner, has had the same South Main Street location for several years. She has a great relationship with her landlord, she said. And needed to come up with a plan to stay put, but with something new, even if it was a scary time to do that.

Talking with friends, she had an epiphany.

“We’ve been missing Shoetique for years here,” she said.

The beloved Branford shoe store owned for decades by businesswoman and school nurse Carol Cornachini closed in 2017.

“Why can’t I do that,” Deko thought.

With minimal retrofitting needed to her existing space, Deko put her money into one thing: inventory. And specially, kids shoes. And Madison Ave. Children’s Shoes was conceived.

And not with just any shoes, but the tried and true brands that have protected kids feet for generations and generations, like 100-year-old Stride Rite brand shoes. Deko tries not to carry brands that one might find in an outlet, she said, as “I can’t compete with outlets,” but kept it simple, though stylish, with a few brands that have stood the test of time, and kids feet, like Sperry, around since 1935, and the more than a century-old Saucony brand.

Deko said that she is entirely focused on just one product: kids shoes. She did not want to pack the new shop with accessories and other superfluous items, she wanted it to be about the shoes, she said. Appointed with seats fit for a kid or grown-up, surrounded by walls of mirrors, each child’s foot is fitted by her with the no-fail Brannock sizing device of old.

Named for her daughter Madison, the shop is bright and welcoming. Madison, 9, is even the inspiration for the shop sign; it’s partly her design.

Deko said she’s committed to giving it her best shot to make the business a success.

The official Shoreline Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting for Madison Ave. Children's Shoes was Tuesday.

“It has not been easy,” Deko said when asked about opening a business in a pandemic. But added that with word-of-mouth and family and friend Facebook-sharing, a few months in, business is really picking up.

“Last month I was like, ‘I don't know if it’s going to work,’” she said.

But of late?

“It’s been picking up like crazy,” she said. “I really hope it catches on. I’ll give it a good year and we’ll see.”

Deko said that she could not have done what she's done if it wasn’t for the support of her husband, family and friends.

Marilyn Monroe said, “Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world.”

The right shoes for Deko are kids shoes.

Madison Ave. Children's Shoes is located at 23 South Main St., Branford. The phone number is (203) 488-2328.