Joining the TOMS Shoes Movement

shuzsociety applauds the efforts of TOMS Shoes and it’s founder Blake Mycoskie.  “You’re not just buying a shoe, you’re joining a movement” Mycoskie notes during his CNN interview.  Mycoskie’s one-for-one business principle:  for every pair of TOMS sold, the 32-year-old gives a pair to a child in need.

The idea came to Mycoskie — who calls himself a “serial entrepreneur” whose first company was a laundry business he started in college — while he was vacationing in Argentina. He says he was overwhelmed by the sight of children living without shoes. But instead of simply starting a charity, he decided he could better serve by launching a for-profit business.

In the 2½ years since its inception, TOMS Shoes has distributed 150,000 pairs of shoes to impoverished children in Argentina, Ethiopia, South Africa and the U.S. via a series of “shoe drops.”

Mycoskie’s approach is a little more hands-on. With a team of volunteers, most of whom are TOMS Shoes customers who signed up to help online, Mycoskie greets kids on the ground and physically slides the shoes onto their feet.

“I think we get as much value out of it as they do, seeing those amazing expressions on those beautiful kids’ faces when they get their first pair of new shoes,” he says.

TOMS — the name being derived from the word “tomorrow” — are based on the traditional canvas Argentine shoe known as the alpargata. Instead of a rope sole, Mycoskie has opted for rubber, and he’s incorporated leather insoles with arch support into the shoe design.

TOMS come in a wide variety of colors and patterns (stripes always sell well, Mycoskie says), and cater to men, women and children. They also don’t break the bank — you can pick up a pair for under $50, a key selling point in this economy.

To view the TOMS collection and “join the movement” …. visit their web site at  TOMSshoes.com.

Read the full story on CNN.com:  These Shoes Help Others Get a Step Up