Maiden Lane’s new product benefits children

Maiden Lane is now selling footwear from TOMS Shoes, a company that developed the concept of “One for One.” For every pair of shoes purchased, TOMS gives a pair of shoes to a child in need.

When visiting Argentina in 2006, Blake Mycoskie saw that many children had no shoes. Beyond the risk of cuts and sores, they were vulnerable to soil-transmitted diseases. What’s more, shoes are often a required part of a school uniform.

Wanting to help, Mycoskie created TOMS Shoes. After less than a year of production, he returned to Argentina with 10,000 pairs of shoes. By September 2010, just four years after its inception, TOMS had given more than 1 million pairs of new shoes to children in more than 40 countries.

Maiden Lane on Broad Street in Nevada City now features the TOMS slip-ons, designed after the traditional Argentine alpargata shoe, and the ballet flats for women. TOMS for men and children will be available in the fall.