Tom's shoes is the creation of founder Blake Mycoskie of Santa Monica, California. Mycoskie competed in the second season of the show The Amazing Race with his sister in Argentina. He went back to Argentina on vacation in January of 2006 and noticed the numerous children without shoes in the poorer villages, he returned to the United States and sold his online driver education company to self-finance a shoe company where every pair of shoes sold, a pair would be given to someone who needs them.

TOMS shoes was started in 2006 and by 2012 the company had given out over 600,000 shoes to children in need around the world. On April 5, 2011, TOMS hosted their 4th annual One Day Without Shoes. The company will challenge people worldwide to go a day without shoes in order to raise awareness for the millions of children who go without shoes every day. More than 250,000 people across the globe went barefoot on April 8 of last year in support of TOMS One Day Without Shoes.