At the Aurora Shoe Company, two shoemakers from worlds thousands of miles apart in so many ways recently met for the first time. She is an Afghan shoe entrepreneur. He runs Aurora Shoe Company. Shahla Akbari, a 19-year-old budding entrepreneur from Afghanistan, talked shop with David Binns, president of the shoe company in Cayuga County.At the Aurora Shoe Company, two shoemakers from worlds thousands of miles apart in so many ways recently met for the first time.

What they had to say might surprise some people. Akbari, speaking through an interpreter, said she needed more money to buy more machines so she can hire more people to make more shoes at her tiny shop in Kabul. She employs 22 workers who make, mostly by hand, a couple of dozen pairs of shoes a day. She buys her materials from Russia via Pakistan. Her workers, who earn $150 to $200 a month, make the shoes which come in one width only — out of synthetic leather. Recycled tires are used for the soles.

“I would like my business to grow, to expand and develop in the most efficient way possible,” said the soft-spoken Akbari, who was wearing jeans, a turtleneck sweater and a print black scarf. Binns, who bought his company two years ago, wants to grow his business as well, but he is taking a different route. Aurora Shoe, which has nine workers, prides itself on making shoes mostly by hand and has no intention of becoming more automated at the factory located along Route 90 south of the village of Aurora. “We concentrate on making one shoe at a time so we can put details into them. Our customers appreciate that,” Binns told his guest.

Akbari visited the United States with 10 other entrepreneurs from Afghanistan. Their trip was sponsored by Bpeace, a nonprofit group of business professionals who believe businesses should have a role in peace-building. “Our philosophy is: Creating jobs builds peace,” said Toni Maloney, the organization’s executive director.

Akbari’s group spent about two weeks in the United States, meeting with business people in their respective professional fields. They were to return home Friday, and another Bpeace group is scheduled to arrive in April. On seeing New York City for the first time, Akbari said, she was most impressed by Manhattan’s skyscrapers and by women’s high-heeled shoes.

On life in Afghanistan, Akbari said danger is ever-present for her, because she is a young woman trying to run a business in a male-dominated country. Some members of her family have pleaded many times with her to close her shop, she said, especially since her father was abducted by the Taliban when she was a young girl. He never returned home and is presumed dead. Her mother owns a construction business and participated in the Bpeace program a few years ago. She recommended her daughter for the program after giving her the seed money to launch the shoe business about two years ago.

At the Aurora Shoe Co., Binns showed Akbari how his workers make shoes, starting with sides of tanned cowhides that cost about $100 each. Workers use knives, scissors, leather punches and glue to turn out 50 pairs of shoes a day. The shoes sell online for as much as $165 a pair. Longtime shoemaker Jesse McLachlan praised Akbari for persevering under what he knows are difficult conditions in Afghanistan.

“I think it’s great she has the will to do it and so forth, and I think it’s a good opportunity for us to learn and for her to learn how we’re doing things,” McLachlan said.

Binns also showed Akbari how he keeps tight inventory of his materials, a lesson that riveted her attention. Akbari has done things differently.  “We put our supplies in the closet and use it as we like,” she said. “We don’t keep track of who uses it, what we use or how much gets wasted.”

Binns said he was contacted by Bpeace to mentor Akbari for the day. He welcomed the opportunity.  “I think it’s an amazing mission statement that Bpeace has — to create peace by creating jobs. It’s something I believe in and I really hope for the best for Shahla and her country,” Binns said.

In Afghanistan, the word for peace is “sohl,” which is pronounced like sole on a shoe, Akbari said. A fitting word, perhaps, for two shoemakers from worlds apart on a peace-building mission.

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