TOMS is a great shoe company and has become quite popular over the past few years. The problem for people who are on a budget is that their shoes can be a bit expensive. If you want like the canvas slip on shoes look then here are some shoes like Toms.
A specific alternative for Toms shoes is Sketchers’ BOBS shoes. The name isn’t exactly original but their shoes are good and cheaper than TOMS. There are a lot of different colors to choose from and based on the ratings, a lot of people like these shoes. They’re comfortable, durable, and fashionable like Toms but for less.
History of TOMS shoes:
Toms company based in Playa Del Rey, California. The company was founded in 2006 by Blake Mycoskie, an entrepreneur from Arlington, Texas. The company designs and sells shoes based on the Argentine alpargata design, eyewear, coffee, apparel, and handbags. When Toms sells a pair of shoes, a new pair of shoes is given to an impoverished child, when Toms sells eyewear, part of the profit is used to save or restore eyesight for people in developing countries.
The company launched TOMS Roasting Co. in 2014, and with each purchase of TOMS Roasting Co. coffee, the company works with other organizations that they refer to as “giving partners” to provide 140 liters of safe water, equal to a one week supply, to a person in need. In 2015, TOMS Bag Collection was launched to help contribute to advancements in maternal health. Purchases of TOMS Bags help provide training for skilled birth attendants and distribute birth kits containing items that help women practice safe childbirth.
Toms’ business model is known as the “one for one concept” model, which is referring to the company’s promise to deliver a pair of free shoes to a child in need for every sale of their retail product. The countries involved have included Argentina, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Haiti, Mexico, Rwanda, South Africa and the United States.
The business has grown beyond producing shoes and has included eyewear and apparel in Toms product lines. The company uses word-of-mouth advocacy for much of its sales, centering its business focus on corporate social responsibility. Part of this model originally involved a non-profit arm called “Friends of Toms” that recruited volunteers to help in the shoe distributions in foreign countries.
Toms trademarked the phrase “One for One” to describe its own business model. Toms has received criticism from the international development community who have stated that Toms’ model is designed to make consumers feel good rather than addressing the underlying causes of poverty. Criticisms have also included whether or not the shoe donation is as effective as a monetary donation to other charities.
Toms responded to this criticism by moving 40% of its supply chain for shoe donation to countries they actively give in. Toms presently manufactures shoes in Kenya, India, Ethiopia and Haiti.
