TOMS Blog

Start Something that Matters, a book by TOMS chief shoe giver, Blake Mycoskie, challenges readers to make a positive change in the world and start a project that matters to them. We’ve received many stories from likeminded individuals that have been inspired to start something that matters. 

This one’s about Tricia Andrews and her One for One company, Givebones. After her husband Blake, a long-time TOMS employee on the Sales team, returned from a TOMS Giving Trip in Central America, Tricia had a “lightbulb” moment. 

After she read Start Something That Matters and heard about the homeless, helpless dogs her husband encountered in Central America, Tricia decided to take a stand and start Givebones, a dog collar company that helps answer that need for assistance. For every collar sold, Givebones gives back 10% of the sales to shelters and rescue groups that help dogs in need. 

“Ultimately,” Tricia explains, “our goal is to generate awareness and financial support in hopes of reducing the amount of homeless dogs being euthanized every year.”

Starting as just a dream, the Givebones team put pen to paper and worked on a business model that brought entrepreneurship and philanthropy together. With Start Something that Matters as their guide, they began to “Find their story”.  They realized the most important part of any business should be its story, told clearly and simply. 

The newly launched Givebones website details the challenges Tricia and her team overcame to build a company with purpose.  They delve into the tools needed to create a sustainable business including: 

• Finding a product with longevity; 
• Bringing a story and meaning to your product; 
• And making it simple for the masses to use and understand. 

Tricia left us with this advice to share, “When telling people about Givebones, I’ve met so many people who have said. ‘I’d love to do something like that, but…’ The advice I have for those looking to ‘start something that matters’ is to just do it!”

Check out the Givebones blog to learn more about how Givebones found its story and learned to adapt in an ever-changing business world. Purchase your pup its own Givebones collar on www.givebones.com.