Special-edition, Congolese-inspired TOMS Shoes
We're teaming up with Giving Partner Eastern Congo Initiative (ECI), an advocacy and grant-making organization founded by Ben Affleck, on two Congolese-inspired designs with an additional give. Read More >>
TOMS x charity: water - An Eyewer collaboration
TOMS and charity: water, an organization founded in 2006 (like TOMS!) that’s dedicated to to helping bring clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations, join forces for the first-ever TOMS Eyewear collab! Read More >>
Giving TOMS Shoes in the DRC
Founded by Ben Affleck in 2010, ECI is an advocacy and grant-making organization that works with and for the people of DRC, the third most populous country in Africa, and one that struggled under a cycle of violence for nearly 20 years – particularly in the east. Read More >>
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An Eclectic Experience
It’s true what they say; At TOMS, we truly are more than just interns in the average sense of the role. We get to be a vital part of the brand and are given real work that exposes us to many different aspects of the company.
Over the past few weeks, our experiences have run the gamut: visiting retailers big and small, planning and attending a Style Your Sole event, as well as being extras for the TOMS x Linus video shoot! I got to speak with my fellow interns, Grace and Casey, about their experiences, so this week I’ll share with you where our TOMS have taken us since we last checked in….
Face-to-Face with the Retail Side
Last week, I, along with three other interns, had the opportunity to shadow Ryan in stopping in at retail stores that carry TOMS in the LA area. We got the opportunity to visit Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom, as well as two local boutiques, Kicks and Kitson. We learned so much of what it takes to make the TOMS retail experience great; from placement within stores, how custom displays are made, and how to lay the groundwork for a store to host a TOMS event.
For me, the most interesting part of this experience was getting to meet the people who interact daily with TOMS fans. Each retailer has a unique audience, and it was so cool to see how the TOMS story reaches each of them. Being able to go out into the field was extremely interesting and created a deeper understanding of the scope and depth of the TOMS community, which makes my internship with the Social Media team even more exciting. Getting to see all of the work at HQ put into action was truly awesome, and it’s pretty awesome to be reminded that we are helping foster the relationships within that community!
Lights, Camera, Linus
Since I was hard at work on another project, I’m letting Grace, the TOMS Eyewear intern who helped out on set, take the stage:
TOMS recently teamed up with Linus, a custom bike shop in Venice, to create a shoe made for bike cruising. The idea behind the Linus video shoot was to tell a day-in-the-life story of a two Los Angeles bike riders through the lens of their TOMS x Linus Cordones. At the end of their ride, the couple arrives at a house party – cue the interns’ debut. (We’re the ones setting the house party scene, socializing, and dancing!)
The actor playing the biker and his “girlfriend” were both really funny and kept the scene genuine, making everyone laugh. It was also a lot of fun being at the Linus store and getting a good look at their bikes, which I had not really seen up close prior to the shoot. (They are sweeeeet!)
On the TOMS end, it was most interesting to witness TOMS interacting with another brand and to see how filming and direction works in the TOMS context through our Media team.
Styling Your Sole
And who am I to steal the thunder from Casey, the resident event intern man!? He and a bunch of interns helped out at last week’s Style Your Sole event in Beverly Hills…
This past Thursday, TOMS hosted an event at the Avalon Hotel in Beverly Hills, where we hosted 8 artists, had live music, and hung out poolside with TOMS fans! The goal for a Style Your Sole event is to engage TOMS fans in a unique experience where they can purchase a pair of shoes and get them customized by a local artist.
The Avalon event – as with most events - was great for us to help be voices for the brand and One for One movement. This kind of experience gives us a chance to step up and communicate with confidence about TOMS, and explain to fans why we do what we do!
A TOMS Style Your Sole is not just painting shoes, it’s the chain reaction that happens in the process when people come together and see their ideas come to life. In doing this, people realize their passions are valued and accepted. That’s what we are all about here at TOMS: Giving people –including us- hope and encouragement to pursue their dreams.
As you can see, we interns have been very busy! Tune in next week to hear more about the second half of our time here as interns. As for what to expect – there’s no telling where we’ll end up in the next 7 days…
Until then!
Abby
