BUY ONE, GIVE ONE

A shoe company proved that anyone could save the world. All you need to do is to buy a pair of shoes that you liked. For every pair of shoes that TOMS Shoes sells, it gives one pair to a child in need. “Buy a pair, give a pair” is the motto of TOMS Shoes. The company started up four years ago in a barn outside Buenos Aires. Blake Mycoskie founded the company. He got the idea during his holiday in Buenos Aires, Argentina. There he saw that many people wore a traditional style of shoes called alpargatas. He also saw that many poor children in the city didn’t have any shoes to wear. When the company first started, there were only twelve people who were making TOMS shoes. These shoes looked like traditional alpargatas. The workers gave the shoes a new look. They added bright colours. A pair of TOMS cost $38 each. He promised to give a pair to a poor child in Argentina for every pair sold. “It’s not very often that a 14-year-old or a 16-year-old can give money to a good cause . And because our shoes are at their lowest price, it allows young people to participate,” Mycoskie said. The company used the Internet to inform people about their campaign. Also celebrities like Demi Moore and Cameron Diaz wore TOMS to help them promote TOMS Shoes. The company now sells six different models in many different colors. They even make wedding shoes. Now the company gives shoes to people in 28 countries. They are thinking of opening factories in China and Ethiopia, too. Mycoskie also hopes to set up factories in Haiti because barefoot children in Haiti are likely to catch tropical diseases. In December 2010, Mycoskie’s dream came true when TOMS gave its millionth pair of shoes away to a poor child in Argentina. He calls this a big success and thanks everyone who has bought TOMS Shoes. He says he wants to help even more now.