Every once in a while, it’s hard to not feel like this whole fashion caper isn’t a little bit superficial. With all the stats about sustainability and the clothing industry flying around – I’m sure you’ve heard about the tonnes of unwanted clothes that end up in landfill every year – my mind often wanders to the ‘how can we fix this?’ conundrum.

While the brand I’m going to tell you about today are not going to fix this problem either, they have at least considered the world when producing their products and developed a program that fits the ‘how can we help?’ bill.

TOMS make shoes and sunnies. It’s as simple as that. But their innovative One for One program means that for every pair of shoes you buy, they’ll give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. And for every pair of sunnies sold, they’ll give sight to someone, through prescription glasses, surgery or medical treatment.

The One for One program is the initiative of founder Blake Mycoskie, who wanted to help create a better tomorrow. As at October 2011, TOMS had given away over 2 million pairs of shoes to children in need in over 40 countries. Amazing.

So this week, TOMS launched in Australia, with a function at Speakeasy in South Yarra. Their business philosophies were clear and it was a thrill to discover that maybe fashion isn’t so superficial after all.

And by the way, the shoes – and sunnies – are pretty awesome too.