Blake Mycoskie founded TOMS Shoes Company in 2006. TOMs Shoes is for profit that focuses on social problems. It is located in Ethiopia, Argentina, and China and donates shoes to children in 23 countries. TOMS Shoes believes that it can improve the lives of people through business. It gives away one new pair of shoes for every pair sold to needy children and replaces outgrown shoes. Mycoskie identified that many children did not have shoes in developing countries. The children had to walk for miles in search of essential services, such as medical services, clean water, and education without shoes. This made them exposed to soil transmitted diseases, such as tetanus, jiggers, hookworms, and podoconiosis. The diseases have the potential of slowing the cognitive growth of the children.
TOMS Shoes forms partnerships with humanitarian organizations across the globe. This helps create quality relationships with communities and governments where it operates. TOMS Shoes also invests in its employees. The company offers fair wages and discourages child labor. TOMS Shoes involves its employees in the company’s operations making them feel a part of its success. This improves motivation, morale, and satisfaction of its employees. TOMS has had an impact in children and the communities it operates. The company had donated one million pair of new shoes worldwide. The one for one movement is of great inspiration to many humanitarian organizations and social entrepreneurs. It encourages them to use this model to solve social problems in the society they operate.
TOMS Shoes has positive impacts on the health and educational needs of children from poor backgrounds. Its method of intervention prevents children from infections on their foot. This helps improve health of the children in the long term and improve their performance in schools and other livelihood benefits. Soil based diseases, especially from worms are prevalent in developing countries. The best way to prevent these diseases is through making shoes available to children. The company ensures that it does not negatively affect shoes businesses in the countries it operates but rather promotes economic impact through job creation.
The foundation aims at building success of the company in the future through operating responsibly. TOMS Shoes encourages potential consumers to buy products from companies that integrate sustainable and responsible practices. Corporate responsibility provides focus on the company’s long term strategies and plans. It helps improve brand recognition and value across the world. Corporate responsibility, especially towards developing countries creates prestige for its brand in the global markets. The main issue that needs to be addressed in the company’s leadership is sustainability. The one on one model enables the company make partnerships with humanitarian organizations that have the potential of covering for the additional cost of operations. TOMS Shoes will only be able to offer shoes as long as the company remains in operation.
Corporate responsibility of TOMS Shoes helps enhance popularity among consumers. The company leaders need to maintain strong relationships with its partners in the nonprofit business to maintain the foundation and ensure its future success. The leaders must also ensure that the foundation is effective in achieving its mission. This requires the leaders to identify new opportunities in new markets to enhance impact of the one for one movement. The company needs to expand to other countries across the world. The leaders of both the for-profit and non-profit businesses need to continue working together to be able to achieve their goals and objectives.
