#TOMS: It's Not Just Shoes, It's Not Just Fashion

“With every product you purchase, TOMS will help a person in need. One for One.”

That tagline has been ringing clear in our heads for as long as we can remember. When you think TOMS, you think shoes. You think, “A company that designs and sell shoes and for every pair of shoes that they sell, they give a pair of shoes to an impoverished child”. But wait, TOMS is a lot more than that!

Here are some things you might not have known about TOMS:

TOMS was founded in 2006 when American traveler Blake Mycoskie befriended children in a village in Argentina and found they had no shoes to protect their feet. Wanting to help, he created TOMS, a company that would match every pair of shoes purchased with a pair of new shoes given to a child in need.
It was originally going to be called, “Tomorrow’s Shoes” but was shortened to simply “TOMS”. Today, TOMS is a for-profit company based on an innovate “One for One” model. TOMS operates the the non-profit subsidiary, “Friends of TOMS”.
TOMS currently produces and gives shoes to over 70 countries around the globe. To date, TOMS has given over 35 million pairs of new shoes to children in need since 2006.

The company also sells eyewear simply called, “TOMS Eyewear”. It was introduced in 2011, having identified that approximately 285 million people worldwide live with low vision and blindness.
With every pair of eyewear you purchase, TOMS will help give sight to a person in need. “TOMS Eyewear” has given sight in 13 countries. To date, TOMS Eyewear has helped restore sight to over 250,000 people, through prescription glasses, medical treatment, or surgery.
Every stripe tells a story: The front part on each pair of “TOMS Eyewear” represents you – a pattern and color that you chose. The middle stripe is TOMS. The color tips represent the person you’re helping restore sight to:

To support sustainable eye care, TOMS “Sight Giving” invests in clinics and hospitals and the people who work in them.
TOMS also produces coffee beans, called “TOMS Roasting Co.”. Fairly new, “TOMS Roasting Co.” was introduced just this year, having identified that more than 780 million people don’t have access to clean water.
With every bag of “TOMS Roasting Co.” coffee you purchase, TOMS will provide one week of clean water to a person in need. TOMS gives water in 5 countries, the same countries they source their coffee beans from.
As per WHO, 20 litres of clean water per say is the recommended daily requirement for adequate health and hygiene. Each bag of “TOMS Roasting Co.” coffee guarantees 140 litres to a person in need.

So if you think that TOMS is just all shoes and fashion and nothing else, think again. TOMS will teach you lessons about life and humanity that you never thought a fashion brand could ever teach you.

If you’re going to shop anyway, why not do it for a good cause?