When you #VisitLubbock, you’ll want to set aside time to pop in one store in particular. It’s a family-first legacy of craftsmanship and custom leather artistry with a strong belief that “wearing a pair of boots is a lifestyle, but making them is an art.”
When you walk into RC Custom Boots, the first thing you’ll notice is the warm hug of leather that envelopes you, earthy, woodsy and pleasantly pungent. The second is the warm greeting you’ll receive from owners Alejandra and Joe Garcia.
The aura of the store is infectious, and I can only imagine the reason for that is the family-centered outlook this business has run on from the very beginning. After all, the storefront is named after Alejandra’s father and the man behind RC Custom Boots, Reuben Cobos, “RC.”
It’s 1958 in Juàrez, Mexico, and 14-year-old RC is experiencing his first day apprenticing under a master bootmaker. I wonder if he knew then, the legacy he’d build that transcends borders.
Alejandra shared that instead of traditional education, it was normal for men to learn a trade in their teenage years.
“My grandfather took him to the bootmaker and said, ‘Is this something you would like to learn?’ And he loved it,” Alejandra said with a genuine smile, that same love apparent in her eyes.
From there, the life of RC Custom Boots began, and for 62 years it’s carried on, allowing customers to choose between purchasing standout inventory items or personalizing leather products from scratch.
RC Custom Boots got its start in Lubbock in 2006 when RC suggested that Alejandra set up a booth in the Clovis Road Flea Market. She took 12 pairs the first weekend and sold every single one. Now, she runs the company’s stunning, modern storefront on 34th Street.
Branding itself on uniqueness, shopping at RC Custom Boots is an experience you won’t find anywhere else. The pieces are timeless and because of the custom element, are available to customers whether the desired items are trending or not.
“A lot of people don’t realize that there’s no limit to what we can do,” Alejandra said.
From designing your customized piece with Alejandra and Joe to the production process run by her brother and father in their El Paso factory, the goods you’ll leave with are quality, guaranteed for life and made out of a love for the craft.
Visitors can leave unworried knowing the company has a history of working with and shipping custom products to people across the world, putting an emphasis on customer service.
“It’s about creating a relationship with the customer,” Alejandra said.
And you can tell she means that no matter the customer. Throughout their time in business, RC Custom Boots has had the opportunity to work with notable figures such as country music artists and award-winning actors.
Recently, their custom pieces made appearances on a hit Western TV show.
“It just so happened that one of the actors had been a customer for many years,” Alejandra said. Before the show started, he reached out and said, ‘I’m gonna need boots. The show is going to be Western-inspired.’”
Since then, other ranch hands and actors from the show have ordered from and kept in touch with the company.
In November of 2023, actor Forrie J. Smith, aka “Yellowstone’s” Lloyd Pierce, held a meet and greet at RC Custom Boots’ pop-up in Amarillo, adding to the list of ways the company hopes to connect with customers.
Despite the incredible doors the business has opened for them, in the end, the story of RC Custom Boots always comes back to one thing- family.
“We’re a small family business. We truly, truly are,” Alejandra said.
Stop by RC Custom Boots and see what this family can do to create a lasting Lubbock memory for you!
By: Visit Lubbock Interns
By: Guest Blogger
By: Maggi Gallaspy
By: Visit Lubbock Interns
226