Cooper-Hewitt's People's Design Awards: And The Winner Is...
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 10.19.07
The nominees have been scrutinized, voted on by the public, the ballots counted, and the winner of the 2007 Cooper Hewitt People's Design Award is...TOMS Shoes! Congratulations to a very deserving company. For anyone who isn't familiar with the company, let's have a quick refresher.
They're one of those great "win-win" companies. The shoes bring sustainable economy and industry to Argentina, where they're produced under strict sweatshop-free criteria, made from local materials like canvas and leather. Then, every time you buy a pair, another pair is donated to a child in Argentina on your behalf.
The business was born when Blake Mycoskie went to visit Argentina and discovered two things: the typical soft shoe called "Alpargata," and that a lot of children don't have shoes and the idea for TOMS was born. And it's working: during the first year of business alone, TOMS sold 10,000 pairs of shoes and Mycoskie returned to Argentina to lead the company's first shoe drop. In November, Mycoskie will travel to Africa, where he will be delivering more than 50,000 pairs of TOMS.
"I'm delighted that for the second year in a row, the public has chosen a socially conscious design that not only looks great, but helps the lives of less fortunate people around the world," said Cooper-Hewitt director Paul Warwick Thompson. Recall that the Katrina Cottage was the recipient of last year's award.
We're also pleased to see GOOD magazine honorably mentioned at #3, and Global Green's work in New Orleans at #5 -- congratulations to all the nominees!
See also our coverage of previous People's Design Awards, including the previous winners Katrina Cottage and Patagonia, plus more on the awards last year and this year.
I was very disappointed with TOMS because I went to pick up a pair and couldn't find one made in Argentina. I checked every shoe in the store and they were all manufactured in China. I was excited to buy them because I wanted to support industry in Argentina. That is their mission, right? and their logo is the Argentine flag.
So what's the deal, where can I get the TOMS that were made in Argentina??? and why doesn't TOMS tell people that most of the shoes are NOT made in Argentina, but in China? I would like to know if TOMS manufacturing in China is under strict sweatshop-free criteria and how they do monitoring.