Roy may have been having a bad day Grainne. I think he's old school reticent, not unfriendly. I write because I take him horrifying battered old shoes all the time, and he smiles ruefully, and fixes them beautifully. My family has never had a bad experience, and we now have a third generation getting their well worn shoes fixed by Roy.
And it is a nice, tidy, shop. I recommend him highly.