stylish slip-ons , which Vogue magazine declared `` cool shoes for a cool cause , '' have become a must-have item among fashion elite and received the People 's Design Award from the Smithsonian 's Cooper-Hewitt Museum last year . By the time he launched TOMS , Mycoskie already had four start-ups under his belt . But he did n't always have his sights set on the business world . Growing up , his aim was to play professional tennis . He trained hard and earned a scholarship to Southern Methodist University , where he studied philosophy and finance . But an injury sidelined him his sophomore year . That 's when he got the idea for his first venture , a college laundry service . Within one year , the business , Easy Laundry , had 40 employees , had expanded to three schools and was generating nearly $ 1 million in sales . That 's when Mycoskie realized he was born to be an entrepreneur and dropped out of school . `` I realized I loved doing this . I realized I loved the idea of creating something out of scratch and seeing it work and seeing the
LONDON , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Blake Mycoskie was traveling in South America when he saw , for the first time , hundreds of children without shoes . TOMS founder and entrepreneur Blake Mycoskie says he wanted to make money and do good at the same time . `` I had never met anyone who did n't have shoes , '' the veteran entrepreneur told CNN . That visit to a village in Argentina inspired the creation of a socially responsible footwear company that blends philanthropy and business . Mycoskie called the company TOMS : Shoes For Tomorrow -- a name that reflects his desire to provide shoes for disadvantaged children in a sustainable way . Mycoskie , now 32 , said he realized he could make money and do good at the same time with TOMS . The company 's mission is uncomplicated : It gives a free pair of shoes to a child in need every time it sells a pair . Santa Monica , Calif.-based TOMS gave away 10,000 pairs of shoes in the first six months after its launch in 2006 . This year the company is on track to donate 200,000 pairs . The