You can buy TOMS Shoes online at tomsshoes.co.uk or you can find your nearest store by visiting www.toms.com/store-locator/ Scroll down to the bottom of the page and you can select the country you are in then type in your postcode or zip code to find your nearest store. TOMS Shoes is a footware company based in Santa Monica, California, which also operates a non-profit subsidiary, Friends of TOMS. With every pair sold, TOMS donates a new pair of shoes to a child in need. The lightweight shoes are based on the Argentine alpargata design. The company was founded in 2006 by Blake Mycoskie, an entrepreneur from Arlington, Texas who was shocked by the lack of shoes available for children when he visited Argentina. Mycoskie decided to focus his attention on shoes due to a serious disease called podoconiosis, which is a debilitating and disfiguring disease also known as "Mossy Foot". It is a soil-transmitted disease caused by walking in silica-rich soil. This causes one's feet to swell along with many other health implications. Shoes are the most basic solution to many of these health risks. Not only are shoeless children susceptible to health risks but they also are not permitted to go to school without footwear. Mycoskie emphasizes that his company's goal is to not only give shoes, but to also educate others on the importance of wearing shoes. Over 1,000,000 pairs of shoes have been given to children under the One for One movement since TOMS launched in 2006. The canvas shoes have been given to children in more than 20 countries worldwide, including the United States (Louisiana, Kentucky, Mississippi and Florida), Argentina, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Guatemala, Haiti, and South Africa. TOMS are sold at more than 500 stores nationwide and internationally, including Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, and Whole Foods, which features styles made from recycled materials.
