Toms Adds Glasses In A Smart, Social Brand Extension Caleb Melby Former Staff Toms, famous for hip shoes, is now adding sunglasses to their product line. And just as purchasing a pair of Toms shoes means that the company will donate a pair to someone in the developing world, buying a pair of sunglasses will guarantee prescription glasses or medical care for those in developing countries. It is a move that will test one of the most enduring and consumer-centric corporate social responsibility strategies to be developed in the last decade. The idea, said founder Blake Mycoskie, is for Toms to be "a one-for-one company," which sounds a little like he doesn't plan on stopping at shoes and sunglasses. CSR is, of course, only half the reason that Toms has been able to give away over 1,000,000 pairs of shoes since its founding in 2006. Its target market is populated by the stylishly hip who go for the shoes designed in the Argentinean alpargata style, which is also chic, urbane and pared down. Who else, after all, sells their shoes at Whole Foods? The Toms glasses line will feature tri-striped temples meant to symbolize the "one for one" mission and cover aviator, Wayfarer and oversized stylesalready deemed fashionable. It looks like they did their homework. Toms won't be the first socially-minded for-profit company to make a brand extension like this. Newman's Own, founded by Paul Newman in 1982, donates their profits to educational and charitable organizations. They started with salad dressing then expanded to a whole range of other product categories. With a few exceptions, most of these have been successful: marinades, salsas, pizzas, wines, even pet foods. (Although the pet foods are now owned by Newman's Own Organics, which became a separate company in 2001.) The companies that succeed at brand extensions do so by keeping the essence of their brand in mind at all times when making the move. This sounds pretty simple when written, but can be a challenge during the exciting and sometimes tumultuous move into a new product line. Knowing that your fans buy your product is not nearly enough - knowing how they use that product and why they identify with it is imperative. The Toms sunglasses extension is well-informed. For consumers, slipping their feet into a pair of Toms is a very visual reminder that someone, somewhere is doing the same thanks to their purchase. The sunglasses/vision care relationship is equally strong. There would be confusion on the part of consumers if Toms continued to donate shoes in return for sunglasses purchases. For companies like Toms and Newman's Own, the charitable functions of the company allow for a smoother, almost de facto brand transition, because consumers already identify with the mission of the company. But other elements of brand are important too. For Newman's, adventurous taste options and perceptions of their products as "healthy" were also essential. Paying special attention to fashion and lifestyle will be central to the effective addition of sunglasses to the Toms brand -- and will allow for more extensions in the future.

Questions 1. Evaluate Tom's movement to promote charitable functions of company. In order to support your argument, elaborate your answer with session 5 specifically "Can Social Enterprise Generate Profit"?

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

Toms movement to promote charitable functions of the company aligns with the principles of social enterprise which aim to generate profit while also c... View the full answer