I’ve been wanting to buy a pair of TOMS shoes for a while … but not from Target. Browsing the shoe department at Tar-jay this weekend, I noticed a cute pair of navy-and-white striped canvas loafers with a straight cut across the top of the foot. Very nautical, very Connecticut. One problem: they look a hell of a lot like TOMS shoes. As you might know, the majority of TOMS shoes are canvas or linen loafers with a distinctive straight cut.
Coincidence? I’m not sure. But TOMS loafers retail for about $44. Target’s knockoffs only retail for $16.99.Diane von Furstenberg will hop out from behind a garbage pail and knife me for saying this, but I’m OK with knockoffs. Though, TOMS shoes aren’t just shoes. The brand has a “One For One” mission where for every pair of shoes purchased, TOMS will give a new pair of shoes to a child in a developing country who may otherwise go barefoot. Children, people.
If your purchase can save you a few bucks while covering your feet, that’s great. But if your purchases can do double duty — cover your feet and help protect a child from cuts/sores/soil-transmitted diseases — then that’s even better. Shopping knockoffs that take away from charity are never in style.
[TOMS] [Target] [TOMS Movement: One For One]Original by Jessica Wakeman
