TOMS: Shoes for Tomorrow

Pink and Navy Toms: $38 each

We all love a 2-for-1 deal especially when it’s for a good cause. At TOMS “Shoes for Tomorrow” this is their motto. Every time you buy a pair of shoes the company donates a pair on your behalf to a child without shoes. Creator Blake Mycoskie (if he looks familiar, he was a contestant on The Amazing Race: Season Two) was inspired on a trip to Argentina by the traditional, rope-soled Argentine “alpargata”. He was struck by the poverty and health issues of the country, and set out to reinvent the alpargata for the U.S. market and provide for those without shoes. To achieve this goal, Blake made a commitment to match every pair of TOMS purchased with a donation of a pair to a child in need. “I was overwhelmed by the spirit of the South American people, especially those who had so little,” Mycoskie says. “And I was instantly struck with the desire – the responsibility – to do more.”

Silver glitter from Holiday collection.

(Note from Bag Snob Tina: I just purchased 3 pairs for myself and ordered 2 pairs for my son, these are the perfect shoes to run around in all year long! Plus every time you pull them on, you can smile at the thought of a child somewhere in the world who also has a pair of shoes because of you 🙂 GO SHOP!)

So, I know you all are dying to buy a pair for yourself. Then purchase a pair of Tiny TOMS for your kids, nieces, nephews, godchildren, etc. If you don’t think owning a pair of shoes is enough, throw a Style Your Soles party – a great excuse for getting together and having fun with friends. Buy each participant a white pair of TOMS and let them become their own fashion designer. It’s a party favor and good deed all in one. I am seriously considering this for my daughter’s upcoming birthday. For more information read about Style Your Sole party or email them.

As for TOMS, the shoes are taking the nation by storm. The celeb following includes Keira Knightley, Orlando Bloom, Kirsten Dunst, Sienna Miller, Renee Zellweger, Tobey Maguire, Jessica Biel, Benicio Del Toro and many others. During Blake’s first year in business, TOMS sold 10,000 pairs of shoes, and he returned to Argentina to lead his first annual Shoe Drop during which he donated to the children who had inspired him. For his second Shoe Drop, Blake will be donating 5 times that number when he travels to Africa in November giving 50,000 pairs of TOMS. That’s amazing!

Friday, October 19, 2007, Blake will be in Dallas for an event promoting TOMS shoes. The party, hosted by the Sewell family, Heidi Dillon, Kimberly Schlegel Whitman, Cate Ford, Todd Fiscus, and others, will be held at The Apartment. We will also be talking to him. Stay tuned for our full interview. For more information about the event email Debra Thom of the HL Group.