Casey Kozieja, Lisa David, Jake Hanczar
Introduction
Often times as consumers of this generation, many are concerned about their appearance and what they wear. Getting the most fashionable shoes possible are a must in this society and many would not be caught dead wearing last season’s trends. TOMS shoes makes the masses realize how fortunate they are to only have to worry about how pretty their shoes are. TOMS will, when purchasing a pair of shoes, send a pair to a child in need. Blake Mycoskie, the founder, decided to create this business after going on a trip to Argentina. He saw the barefoot children and knew he needed to take a stand against infections, injuries, and poverty.
Situation Analysis
Mycoskie took his trip to Argentina in 2006, where his idea to help the underprivileged and impoverished children there, and around the world, avoid infections and injuries through the simple gift of a shoe. TOMS created the “One to One” process where when a pair is purchased, TOMS will send a pair to a child in need. TOMS’ popularity grew with ease. Helping people just by buying shoes was a trend everyone wanted to partake in. They have donated over 10 million pairs to over 50 countries and have partnerships with Ralph Lauren, Element Skateboards, and even Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen to collaborate with the One to One idea (Ahsmann, 2011). AT&T was also so inspired by Mycoskie’s brand that they teamed up with TOMS for an ad campaign. Blake Mycoskie’s trip started something so much bigger than he had ever imagined.
Research Conducted by the Company
The research Blake conducted was experiential in that his observations informed him of who he wanted to target and who he wanted to help. TOMS wants to appeal to a huge audience so that they can help those in need. Their target audience’s demographics include males and females from 13-30 years old, caucasians and minorities (Ahsmann, 2011, p. 6). The people who buy TOMS Shoes are the people who want to see change in our world. Though giving shoes might seem as though it is not a big deal, it will greatly affect the lives of the children who receive them. They found that providing these shoes not only helps children improve physically, but it impacts them educationally and in a way that can decrease poverty as well.
Goals
TOMS main goal is to push this “One for One” idea to improve the lives of those less fortunate. On the TOMS website, they break down exactly how these shoes will impact lives drastically. In buying TOMS Shoes, children all over the world will have improved health, access to education, and a revived sense of confidence. Health improves because shoes will prevent injuries, infections, and diseases. This is a very important aspect that Blake Mycoskie takes into account. His goal is to make these children healthy and live up to their full potential. TOMS allows access to education because at many schools, if a child’s feet is not covered by shoes then they will not be able to attend class that day. Providing these shoes can increase school attendance by as much as 62% (“One for One”, 2014). Education can break the poverty cycle. Having shoes is also a huge confidence booster. Those who are confident will continue their education and contribute to their community (“One for One”, 2014). Many do not realize how much a simple cotton shoe can impact an underprivileged child’s life.
Target Audience
As aforementioned, Blake Mycoskie carefully thought out his business plan and ideas to appeal to a certain demographic and psychographic of people. Now that TOMS has become a very popular brand throughout the United States, and even the world, it is easy for anyone to get their hands on a pair to help another in need. Typically, TOMS are aimed at both males and females from those who are in their early teens to those who are reaching their thirties. Many of the people who purchase and wear TOMS Shoes are those who want to make a change or who are interested in getting involved in different types of worldly and social causes. Buyers of TOMS are both caucasians and minorities. They are price-conscious people who are also very fashion-forward.
Tactics
TOMS Shoes’ plan for making “One to One” happen is simple. When one purchases the shoes, another pair is donated to a child in need. TOMS then decides which shoes to bring. They make outdoor sustainable shoes that now vary from sneakers to slip-ons to snow boots. TOMS and their team, known as “Giving Partners,” deliver the shoes right to the feet of the children. As Andriana Herrera states, “Those children are an essential part of the company’s marketing.” This statement is true because without these children, TOMS would not even exist. As Marketing News Magazine states, “ The one-for-one model is gaining steam because the marketplace is increasingly interested in corporate social responsibility, and because many charitably minded businessmen and women believe that more good can be done via a for-profit company than a nonprofit organization, experts say” (Soat, 2012). Some other tactics they used include promotions such as the Shoe Design Contest where anyone could design their own TOMS. The winner had their shoes sold by the company. They also have their “One Day without Shoes” Campaign, which spreads awareness for the cause.
Messages
With TOMS’ one-to-one program, they have pledged to donate a pair of shoes to an underprivileged child for every pair of shoes sold. TOMS Shoes, Inc. have already donated over a million pairs of shoes to more than 50 countries.
Execution
TOMS came up with the design of a light slipper-like shoe made of cotton or canvas based on the traditional Argentinean alpargata. These are now considered TOMS Classics. They have now come up with a few additional designs like the TOMS Cordones, which is a shoes that can be worn without laces, and the Stitchouts, which are designed specifically for men. TOMS also came up with the wedge and the Wrapboot, designed for women, and the Youth and Tiny TOMS children’s shoes. TOMS is also has vegan-friendly shoe options. TOMS Shoes are manufactured in China, Argentina, Ethiopia, and Russia. With each shoe purchase, a new pair of TOMS Shoes is given to child through one of our 100 plus Shoe Giving Partners. Each of their partners provide health, education, or community development programs to help improve the future of children, their families and communities in need. Shoe Giving is integrated into their everyday work, supporting things like health checkups, microfinance programs, youth leadership programs, school support and many more. TOMS Shoes established sustainable relationships with their Giving Partners so that they can provide new shoes to children as they grow.
Evaluation
TOMS conducts monthly evaluations of their sales to see what progress they have made. Their sales and finance department help them to evaluate if they are making the right choices in their business. They evaluate things like sales, repeat purchases, brand awareness, and even brand interaction through social media (Ahsmann, 2011). If they are making good progress, TOMS knows that they are making the right efforts to further expose their brand in the best ways possible.
Current Information
With TOMS becoming more and more popular, Mycoskie had to think of new ways to keep consumers interested and coming back for more. They are engaged in social media such as blogs, Twitter, Facebook, and even have an app for iPhones and Androids. TOMS has pushed the One for One aspect even further through selling sunglasses and coffee. Through purchasing sunglasses, TOMS will give sight to those with visual impairment. TOMS has helped restore sight to more than 200,000 individuals around the world (“One for One”, 2014). Through selling coffee, TOMS will donate clean water to those in need. By adding on sunglasses and coffee as products, TOMS will keep their relevance among their target audience through fresh new ideas of how to help those who need it most.
Own Analysis and Evaluation
We believe that TOMS Shoes, Inc. is a great organization that brings underprivileged children shoes for life. It not only protects their feet, decreases infections, enables them to go to school, and with their education it decreases the cycle of poverty. Everyone should go out and buy these shoes because it is going to a great cause and helps people that are not as fortunate as us little by little.
(Video Advertisement)
AT&T and TOMS Shoes Ad
References
Ahsmann, A. (2011, May 10). TOMS Public Relations Plan. TOMS PR Plan. Retrieved July 21, 2 2014, from http://averima.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/toms-pr-plansbook.pdf
Griner, D. (n.d.). AT&T spot introduces nation to Toms Shoes. AdWeek. Retrieved July 23, 2014, f from http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/att-spot-introduces-nation-toms-shoes-14339
justWink App Helps TOMS Change the Road Ahead in One Day Without Shoes Campaign. (2014, (2014, April 25). justWink App Helps TOMS Change the Road Ahead in One Day Without Without Shoes…. Retrieved July 23, 2014, from http://www.prnewswire.com/news -releases/justwink-app-helps-toms-change-the-road-ahead-in-one-day-without-shoes-campaign-2 56689531.html
One for One. (n.d.). TOMS : One for One. Retrieved July 23, 2014,
from http://www.toms.com/gift-of-shoes
Shambora, J. (2010). Blake Mycoskie, Founder of TOMS Shoes. Fortune, 161(4), 72.
SOAT, M. (2012). GIVE A LITTLE, Get a Lot. (cover story). Marketing News, 46(14), 14-19.
TOMS shoes, inc. (n.d.). In Plunkett research. Retrieved from Plunkett Research Online database.
SWOT
Picture from Averi Ahsmann’s TOMS Public Relations Plan, 2011.
COLLATERAL FINDINGS
There recently was a new press release on PR Newswire about how TOMS paired up with the justWink App. This App will help promote TOMS’ “Day without Shoes” campaign. PR Newswire states that, “justWink, the fresh and bold greeting card brand from American Greetings that lets you connect anywhere, anytime, will help participants connect and share their One Day Without Shoes experiences by offering 18 special edition digital greetings cards that were created specifically for this wonderful cause to be sent via the awesome free app.” This app will help the campaign gain the recognition it deserves. This press release does not differ from the values that TOMS obtains. TOMS was also featured in an AT&T ad which was good publicity for them. According to Adweek.com, by the end of the weekend after the commercial was played, the company was already saying that thousands of new shoes orders were coming in, which means thousands of shoes for impoverished children worldwide (Griner, 2009).
Evaluate Case Study
TOMS teaches us how fortunate we truly are. Blake Mycoskie developed a company where everyone can get involved in a social movement that needs to be supported. Simply buying shoes, sunglasses, or coffee can improve the lives of underprivileged people around the world. TOMS never really faced issues per se so it is hard to make a compare and contrast of a problem. A similar company to TOMS Shoes is BOBS by Sketchers. They have basically the same system as TOMS and are considered a “TOMS knockoff.” Like TOMS’ One for One system, BOBS’ has a Soles4Soul program but instead of donating one pair to children in need they donate two. TOMS still is more appealing to consumers because they advertise more and have a wide variety of shoes to choose from for men, women, teens, and children.
ARTICLES USED
justWink App Helps TOMS Change the Road Ahead in One Day Without Shoes Campaign
CLEVELAND, April 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — For the third year, the justWink app is proud to support the TOMS One Day Without Shoes campaign to change the road ahead for millions of children worldwide that lack proper footwear. This is about more than shoes – the campaign seeks to raise global awareness for children’s health and education. justWink, the fresh and bold greeting card brand from American Greetings that lets you connect anywhere, anytime, will help participants connect and share their One Day Without Shoes experiences by offering 18 special edition digital greetings cards that were created specifically for this wonderful cause to be sent via the awesome free app.
Getting involved is super simple: on Tuesday, April 29, just take off your shoes! When people ask why you’re barefoot, tell them about One Day Without Shoes. Another way to help is by participating in the Barefoot Challenge; this is a program in which any group of ten or more people walk barefoot in their community and collect pledges for their walk.
“The opportunity to partner with TOMS again to support such a worthy cause is very exciting for justWink,” said Melissa Jamison, brand manager for justWink. “The justWink app allows people to connect on a personal level for this worldwide purpose. It is important to us that we are providing consumers with fun and easy ways to share their experiences, especially for a meaningful goal like raising global awareness for children’s health and education.”
American Greetings is also raising awareness for One Day Without Shoes by hosting their Style Your Sole event for the second year. Pairs of TOMS shoes will be painted by justWink artists with their signature cool creativity and be auctioned off at the American Greetings world headquarters in Cleveland, OH; the proceeds will be donated to local charities.
“We’re so excited to continue our partnership with American Greetings,” said Blake Mycoskie, founder and chief shoe giver of TOMS. “They’ve been a huge supporter of One Day Without Shoes for years and truly outdid themselves with their digital card designs this year. It’s great having that special touch for the campaign.”
Supporters can go to www.toms.com/OneDayWithoutShoes to get all of the latest updates, create and join events in their area, download an event tool kit, and upload photos. Anyone can join the online conversation by using the #withoutshoes hashtag to see how others around the world are getting involved.
AT&T spot introduces nation to Toms Shoes By Adweek Blogs
When you buy a pair of shoes from Toms, another pair is donated to a child in need. This “One for One” business model has sparked a lot of well-deserved Web buzz for the e-retailer, but Toms got a healthy heaping of national attention this weekend from this new AT&T ad, which debuted during Masters Tournament coverage. “Two months ago AT&T approached us wanting to feature Toms in an ad campaign,” founder Blake Mycoskie writes on the company’s blog. “We could not have been more excited and grateful, but to find out weeks later that the ad would premiere as part of the Masters telecast was truly an honor.” By the end of the weekend, the company was already saying that thousands of new shoes orders were coming in, which means thousands of shoes for impoverished children worldwide. Mycoskie is optimistic that the publicity boost could also result in expanding the donation concept beyond shoes. “Our debut on the Masters telecast,” he predicts on the blog, “will prove to be a landmark moment for our One for One movement.”
—Posted by David Griner
Blake Mycoskie, Founder of TOMS Shoes
HOW I GOT STARTED…
A door-to-door laundry business? Reality-TV star? The story behind the world’s hottest shoemaker
MY FIRST VENTURE was a door-to-door laundry business for students that I started while on a partial tennis scholarship at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. I wanted to do something that didn’t depend on my hands to create value. My father is a doctor, so when he’s playing golf, he’s losing money. When I came out of a business class and saw my trucks picking up laundry, I thought, I’m in class and making money at the same time. After we expanded EZ Laundry to four colleges, I sold my share. I moved to Nashville to start an outdoor-media company that Clear Channel scooped up three years later.
In 2002 my sister and I teamed up to compete on the CBS reality show The Amazing Race. We didn’t win, but my travels during the show led me back to Argentina in 2006. On my visit I saw lots of kids with no shoes who were suffering from injuries to their feet. I decided a business would be the most sustainable way to help, so I founded TOMS [in Santa Monica], which is short for a “better tomorrow.” For each pair of shoes sold-TOMS are based on the classic alpargata style worn in Argentina-we donate a pair to a child in need. AT&T found the story so compelling that it decided to feature us in a television campaign last year. Today TOMS can be found online and in stores like Whole Foods and Nordstrom, and on the feet of more than 400,000 kids in countries like Argentina and Ethiopia.
SECRETS OF MY SUCCESS
PERSONALIZE IT
Storytelling is the new marketing. I think that’s why AT&T called me to appear in its commercial, because stories get shared and spread much more than a message or a product.
BEWARE EXPERTS BEARING GIFTS
As entrepreneurs we often get pressured into hiring an industry executive. While it’s good to hire people with experience, it can also be a stumbling block because they think about the business the same way everyone else does.
NO CLOCK PUNCHERS
Walk away from anyone who is unduly focused on vacation and compensation. It’s a sign of potential trouble. No matter how talented you are, if you don’t really want to work at TOMS, you’ll never work out here.
SPEND!
Instead of squirreling away your earnings early in your career, spend on experiences that will enrich your life-like diving with great white sharks. It can expose you to influential people who could open doors for you.
