Spa Shoes, the place where your shoes and bags come back to life.

Liviu Berbece is the founder and CEO of Spa Shoes, the largest shoe and bag cleaning and restoration network in Romania, with 15 locations nationwide. Passionate about innovation and entrepreneurship, he has turned a simple idea into a successful business, offering clients premium services for the care and maintenance of footwear and bags.

C&B: Describe your activity!

Liviu Berbece: My activity focuses on developing and strengthening Spa Shoes as a premium brand in the shoe cleaning and restoration industry. We provide innovative solutions for maintaining shoes, sneakers, and accessories through professional cleaning, refurbishment, and customization methods. We are also constantly expanding through strategic partnerships with retailers and footwear stores to make our services as accessible as possible to clients across the country.

C&B: What’s the story of your evolution?

Liviu Berbece: I graduated from the Faculty of Environmental Engineering within the Hydrotechnical University of Iași. During college, I started working in promotions for various brands, beginning as a promoter and eventually coordinating regional activities for the Moldavia region. That experience sparked my passion for marketing and sales, so I continued to build my career in this field.

Later, I worked for almost 10 years in a multinational tobacco company, holding various positions from marketing to sales. After a decade, I felt it was time to move to the next level, so I began managing a few businesses for a friend, which gave me a new perspective on entrepreneurship.

Today, Spa Shoes is my “baby” – a project I wholeheartedly believe in and to which I dedicate all my energy and passion.

C&B: What were your visions in childhood/adolescence, and what are they now?

Liviu Berbece: As a child, I worked on weekends and during holidays in the countryside alongside my parents, working in the garden to earn money and buy whatever I wanted. We sold our homegrown produce at the market, and this helped me develop an entrepreneurial spirit from an early age. I learned what responsibility, hard work, and the satisfaction of seeing results truly mean.

Today, my vision is much clearer: I want to take Spa Shoes to an international level and change the way people perceive shoe care. I believe quality products deserve a second chance, and through our services, we make that possible.

C&B: How did the idea of this business come to you?

Liviu Berbece: From a personal need: there was no one to clean my shoes, and I’m a pretty lazy person when it comes to that. The idea came to me while I was in America, where I saw a guy selling shoe-cleaning solutions on the street. I remembered how I used to wash my shoes in the sink, and Alina would scold me for making a mess. That image stuck with me, and I realized there was a real need for such services. I started with a small workshop and one employee, but through hard work and dedication, Spa Shoes became the market leader in Romania. Today, we have a professional team, 15 locations, and collaborations with major brands in the industry.

C&B: What are the life and work principles you follow?

Liviu Berbece: My principles are simple: hard work, respect, and integrity. I believe success comes from perseverance and the desire to always deliver the best. At Spa Shoes, we apply the same values – we treat every pair of shoes with the attention it deserves, respect every customer, and act with honesty in everything we do. Moreover, I believe in the power of innovation and continuous evolution. That’s why we invest in new technologies and strategic partnerships to elevate our services to a premium level while keeping our core essence: restoration, longevity, and sustainability.

C&B: Have the pandemic or economic crises affected your business?

Liviu Berbece: We actually opened during the pandemic, at a time when many businesses were closing down. It was a challenge, especially since people stayed home and no longer paid attention to their footwear. Moreover, many did a “general cleaning” and threw away shoes they thought were beyond repair, not knowing they could have been restored. It was a setback, but it motivated us to educate the market and show that every pair deserves a second chance. Today, Spa Shoes is the largest shoe cleaning and restoration network in Romania precisely because we turned that challenge into an opportunity for growth and innovation.

C&B: You’re in front of a potential client, partner, or employer. What’s the phrase that convinces them?

Liviu Berbece: Don’t let memories fade away – give them new life! At Spa Shoes, we transform your favorite shoes, bringing back their shine and comfort. Whether it’s your collector sneakers or the shoes you wore while writing your story, we make them look brand new!

C&B: What advice do you have for those just starting out or feeling uncertain?

Liviu Berbece: Believe in your idea, even if others don’t! Every successful business started from a vision that, at first, only the founder could clearly see. Don’t get discouraged by obstacles or by other people’s skepticism. Put in the work, passion, and soul, because that’s the only way to build something authentic and lasting. If you truly want to succeed, be consistent, adaptable, and never give up easily – the results will come!

C&B: What is your opinion about society and its evolution?

Liviu Berbece: Society is evolving rapidly, but sometimes, instead of bringing us closer, progress seems to push us apart. We live in a world where technology connects us virtually, yet we lose more and more real connections – the authentic moments we used to share with others.

We’re always rushing, chasing something new, and we forget to enjoy the small things that once brought us joy.

In this context, I believe it’s important to remember the value of what we already have – whether it’s relationships, memories, or even objects with a story. At Spa Shoes, we try to bring that mindset into our business as well: not to throw away what’s old, but to give it a second chance, to restore the shine of things that once mattered. Evolution doesn’t only mean running toward the new – it also means appreciating what defines us.

Confidence in his own convictions, sustained work, and the desire to create value are the elements that define Liviu Berbece’s journey and the evolution of Spa Shoes. From a personal need to a successful business, his story proves that every obstacle can be turned into an opportunity, and that passion and perseverance are the essential ingredients for building something authentic.