Keeping the spindles turning
Samir Milad, 63, works in his sewing machine repair shop in Cairo. Milad, who has been doing such work since he was 11, has repaired thousands of Singers, Brothers, Pegasuses, and an Egyptian model named after Nefertiti. (Holly Pickett / For The Times)
Samir Milad’s sewing machine repair shop, left, is well known in an area full of similar shops in Cairo. (Holly Pickett / For The Times)
Samir Milad, 63, talks with a customer in his sewing machine repair shop in Cairo. The job today is less attractive, Milad says. The young generation is greedy. They want money quickly. When I was younger, we were passionate about the skill of repairing. But the young today dont want to learn a craft. (Holly Pickett / For The Times)
Samir Milad, 63, repairs a sewing machine at his shop in Cairo. These days, he no longer fixes old machines, focusing instead on repairing and selling modern machines and parts to the factories of the clothing industry. (Holly Pickett / For The Times)
Samir Milad searches for a part in a storage room at his sewing machine repair shop in Cairo. He began learning his craft from a Greek at age 11 and branched out on his own three years later. (Holly Pickett / For The Times)
