Tuesday, September 25th, 2007...6:52 am

Get TOMS-itis

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TOMS
TOMS on the town
For every pair of TOMS shoes you buy, Tom plants a tree. Just kidding – I couldn’t resist. Actually, for each pair you buy, founder-cutie Black Mycoskie personally delivers a pair of shoes to a third-world child in need. About his 1-1/2-year-old business, my new hero said this month, “It felt like yesterday that I was working out of my apartment in Venice with three interns that I found on Craigslist. TOMS now has 16 full time employees, a large office building, a professional phone system, and if all goes well, a working fax machine in the coming days. I feel so blessed.”

At $38-$68 a pop, the TOMS shoe design is based on a traditional Argentine shoe. They come in dozens of fabrics and patterns, and even hand-painted limited editions. Sienna Miller, Toby McGuire, Keira Knightly and Karl Lagerfield are all TOMS wearers and do-gooders.

Blake’s first “shoe drop” delivered 10,000 pairs to Argentinia last year, and this year the goal is to deliver 50,000 pairs to South Africa in November. Time is running out – go! Buy!

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