“Two-for-one” just doesn’t cut it anymore.
At least not since Blake Mycoskie, owner and founder of Toms, a nationally philanthropic shoe store, created the idea of the “one-for-one” charity, where a pair of shoes is donated to an impoverishered child everytime a customer purchases shoes.
The shoe-craze has found its way to Baton Rouge and New Orleans in stores such as Jean Therapy and Shoes Station, but local store owners say the trend is slow to catch on.
“They didn’t sell hugely – but steady enough at the store in New Orleans – that we’re going to start selling them here in Baton Rouge,” Yadi Mejia, Jean Therapy manager said.
Toms started doing business in May 2006 and within a few months sold around 8,000 pairs of shoes, said Brad Otts, Toms sales representative.
“A lot of companies, and not to knock them, will give a percentage of their sales to charity, or give some of their money at the end of the year to a cause. We’re the first to do the ‘one-for-one’ thing,” said Brad Otts, a Toms sales representative.
Mycoskie’s idea for Toms goes back to 2002, Otts said, when Mycoskie participated in CBS’s “The Amazing Race” and visited interesting countries.
Upon his return to the U.S. and after his graduation from college, Blake tried to open a few small businesses. While he was successful with all of them, he got bored and decided to return to traveling around the world.
While in Argentina, Mycoskie met a polo player by the name of Alejo. Mycoskie was interested in the shoes Alejo was wearing, called Aleargatas, Otts said.
“The shoes were like a jack of all trades,” he said. “They were super cheap, and no matter your class or job, Blake noticed everyone wore them.”
It was Mycoskie’s trip to Los Pilatos, a small village in Argentina that eventually led to the idea that would lead to his foot-attire success.
“[Blake] noticed that all the children would have to walk a ways to school or to get food, and when they returned, their feet would be cut up and bruised,” Otts said. “Since there was not much healthcare, [Blake] had the idea of getting these unfortunate kids some shoes.”
Mycoskie visited an Aleargata factory in Argentina and explained the idea to the owner. The owner was so moved, he gave Mycoskie three bags of shoes, which Mycoskie brought back to Los Angeles and sold to a few local vintage boutiques, Otts said.
This past October, Mycoskie and his associates, returned to the village to perform a “Shoe Drop” in which they literally put the shoes on the children’s feet, Otts said.
“We also have distribution in Australia, Japan, France and Spain. We have other factories besides Argentina, we’re hoping to build the Argentinean factory up and have that be our only operation, since that’s where we came from,” Otts said.
Otts said Toms would be making its way to South Africa in November, and is even looking to do a national Shoe Drop next year.
“We’ve even started Friends of Tom. It’s a non-profit organization that funds things like the Shoe Drop, and even buying school supplies for the children,” Otts said.
—-Contact Adam Pfleider at [email protected]