Toms Shoes

TOMS Shoes is a unique shoe company which promotes the ONE FOR ONE program. For every pair of shoes purchased, TOMS Shoes donates a pair of shoes to a child without.

The idea was created by Blake Mycoskie who in based in Los Angeles, California and launched the company during March 2006. He teams with the Hanson group on "The Walk Tour" to end poverty and fight AIDS in third-world countries using fashion as the means. The first shoe drop was in Argentina in 2006.

Since its outset "TOMS Shoes" has distributed over 400,000 pairs of shoes to children in developing countries through the "One for One" model.

Inspired by the "One for One" movement, Element Skateboards have issued a One for One skateboard, and say they will forever donate one skateboard per one purchased, to a child at the Indigo Skate Camp, Durban in South Africa.

TOMS shoes are sold online at the company's website, as well as at major retailers like Macy's and Urban Outfitters. The shoes come in a wide variety of colors and include sizes for men, women, and children.

Blake Mycoskie came up with the idea for TOMS shoes after visiting Argentina. There he saw the number of children living in poverty without shoes to wear on their feet. After selling 10,000 shoes, TOMS had their first "Shoe drop" in 2006, personally delivering shoes to people in Argentina. They had another shoe drop in 2007, bringing 50,000 shoes to children of Africa. TOMS will have another shoe drop in Ethiopia in 2008. http://www.toms.com/