In the heart of Wimberley, tucked inside a charming old building that feels like it belongs in a Western film, lives a legend. Known far and wide as “The Boot Whisperer,” Ulli Johnston has spent the last 30 years crafting an experience that defies explanation. She doesn’t just sell boots. She matches them. Johnston’s talent is connecting one-of-a-kind vintage, custom, and handmade boots with the people who were meant to wear them.
Not everyone who steps into Johnston's Wild West Store leaves with their perfect pair. But if the boots are there, she will find them. It’s not a science. It’s not a trick. It’s something much deeper. It is an intuitive, practiced art form that Johnston has mastered like no one else.
Johnston’s path to the lonestar state started with a simple trip from her home in Germany and ended with her meeting her future husband at an auction—a fitting start to a Texas-sized love story. A month later, they were married and living in his Airstream parked at Blue Hole. Three decades later, they still happily call Wimberley home.
Johnston’s appreciation for fine leather started small at local antique fairs in Austin. One pair of classic brown boots led to another, and another, and then to a full-blown passion. She became a pro at spotting high-quality vintage and custom boots, especially those made between the 1940s and 1980s before the boom of mass-production. Her store today is like a living museum, but without the glass cases and “do not touch” signs. These boots are meant to be worn.
What makes Johnston’s process so mesmerizing is that she doesn’t ask for your size or style preference. She watches and listens. Then, she brings out pairs, and sometimes sizes, that you’d never pick for yourself and, somehow, they just fit. People call it magical. One customer even said, “Watching Ulli in action is better than watching TV.”
Johnston says, “The title 'Boot Whisperer' had to be given and had to be earned.” It was coined in 2006 by a customer who walked out of her store, stunned, wearing a pair of boots Johnston had selected without knowing her preferences or shoe size. Since then, the term has become much more than a name; it’s a reputation and an experience she’s created all on her own.
Johnston’s clientele spans the globe—international travelers, curious wanderers, the occasional celebrity like Jimmy Buffett (who, as it turns out, wore more than just flip flops). But the experience is the same for everyone: no red carpet, no VIP treatment—just boots, stories, and the careful attention of someone who genuinely wants to get it right. Many have asked Johnston to share her trade secrets, but even she can’t fully explain it.
There’s no website full of inventory, Instagram page, or online shop. Her store runs on unforgettable moments and word of mouth. And that’s just how Johnston likes it. If you ask her to name a favorite pair from her collection, it’s like asking a mother to choose a favorite child. Still, she lights up when she talks about a pair of Tony Lamas from the late 1940s with butterfly inlays: “They are off the charts,” she says, grinning. Her motto? “The warmer the weather, the shorter the boots.”
Although she’s received offers to move her shop to high-profile locations everywhere from San Antonio’s River Walk to New York’s Fifth Avenue, Johnston has stayed put. She prefers the small-town magic of Wimberley, the slower pace, and the quiet hum of something real. When she transitioned to appointment-only hours, skeptics warned that her business would dry up. Instead, it only deepened the mystique. “Once boot lovers find me,” she says, “they don’t go anywhere else.”
For Johnston, it’s never been about sales; it’s about stories, connections, and the belief that the right pair of boots is out there waiting. Finding them might feel like luck, but in truth, it’s a journey with a little exploration and a little surrender. And when Johnston finds that one pair you didn’t even know you were looking for—that one-of-a-kind boot, full of character that’s just your size (or not)—you’ll understand why they call her The Boot Whisperer.
The Wild West Store is open by appointment only. Call in advance to schedule time with The Boot Whisperer: 512.293.4890