Kathy Dosch
Kathy Dosch is the general manager of Bur-Mar's Shoes. This business started in 1979 when her parents bought the store. Although Kathy had retail and customer support experience from her time working at JCPenney, she had no experience selling footwear. However, she was more than excited to face this new challenge. This willingness to throw herself head-on into challenges characterizes Kathy's growth and Bur-Mar's Shoes’ path to success.
Although Bur-Mar's Shoes started off in Super City Mall carrying footwear for men, women, and children, it quickly gravitated towards becoming a women's footwear store located in the Lakewood Mall (now Uptown Aberdeen), carrying a diverse selection of quality women's shoes for all weather conditions, including sizes 11 and 12, which are much rarer for women to find in stores.
Kathy graduated from Northern State University with an associate's degree in business. Her background in business has aided her and her family in making successful business decisions, from deciding to move from the original location in Super City Mall and an additional downtown Aberdeen location. And then finally to Uptown Aberdeen as they saw the development of this mall to be the expansion of the Aberdeen community.
Bur-Mar’s Shoes is renowned in the Aberdeen community as a sit and fit brick-and-mortar dedicated to satisfying its customers; “it’s the very heart of the business”. Since, its inception, Bur-Mar’s has gone above and beyond to innovate avenues to continually build connections with its customers. One of these memorable instances was the creation of a website in 2003; not just a website but a website with a checkout and shopping feature. This was not an easy task because information on how to design these types of websites and people who could do it were hard to find. It was at a fashion show that Kathy met a model who was able to design her dream website. This model was Gretchen Sharp, who is now the Executive Director of the Aberdeen School Foundation. Gretchen not only crafted the website but also trained employees, including Kathy's son Zachary, who later pursued a career in Information Technology.
Kathy strived hard to build and design this website because she recognized and appreciated the numerous benefits having an online presence would bring to her brand. Kathy was right in her thinking, and so far, having a website has helped to boost awareness about Bur-Mar's Shoe brand and increased competition with other shoe brands. Some business owners may be intimidated by this increase in competition and exposure; Kathy, however, loves it. She firmly believes any kind of competition is good for business and is not threatened by the number of brands Bur-Mar's has to compete against online and locally. Rather than viewing them as adversaries, she sees them as complementary forces encouraging her to consistently be on her A-game.
Her knowledge of footwear also stretches to an understanding of shoes that are not just stylish but also comfortable and offer proper sole support. Inside the store is an Aetrex foot scanning machine, offering customers a 3D measurement of their feet, analyzing foot pressure, and recommending suitable footwear and orthotics- shoe inserts that help to even out the foot pressure and walking style and help to prevent situations like back pain, hip, and pelvic ache.
With Kathy’s fearless approach to challenge and her keen business sense, it is a no-brainer that Bur-Mar's Shoes is celebrating their 44th year of local ownership. Kathy’s unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction, demonstrated through her personalized services and willingness to grow and expand solidifies Bur-Mar’s as the thriving establishment in the Aberdeen community.
