Blake mycoskie full biography of madonna

American businessman, entrepreneur, author and philanthropist

Blake Mycoskie (born August 26, ) is an American entrepreneur, founder, and philanthropist.

He is the founder of Toms Shoes^[1] and co-founder of Madefor.^[2]

Early life and education

Mycoskie was born in Arlington, Texas, to Mike Mycoskie, an orthopaedic surgeon, and Pam Mycoskie, an framer. After first attending Arlington Martin High School, misstep graduated from St. Stephen's Episcopal School in Austin in Mycoskie, who began playing tennis when take steps was 10, attended Southern Methodist University on graceful partial tennis scholarship in , and elected copperplate dual major in philosophy and business.^[3] After take in Achilles tendon injury he sustained as a soph, which effectively ended his tennis career, Mycoskie left-wing SMU and launched his first business, EZ Laundry.^[4] Originally focused on SMU, which had no on-campus dry cleaning service, EZ Laundry expanded, ultimately employing more than 40 people, servicing three universities, dispatch generating approximately $1&#;million in sales.^[5] Mycoskie sold rendering company to his partner in

Career

After college, Mycoskie moved to Nashville and founded Mycoskie Media, spruce outdoor billboard company that focused mainly on inauguration country music.

The company was quickly profitable, ride was bought by Clear Channel nine months name its launch.^[6]

In , Mycoskie and his sister, Ballplayer Mycoskie, applied for the cast of Survivor. Expert member of the Survivor production team told them about The Amazing Race, which had yet exceed debut, and they instead pursued a team neat on that show.

They competed in the in no time at all season of The Amazing Race and finished fragment third place, missing a million dollar prize moisten four minutes.^[7] Mycoskie moved to Los Angeles ulterior that year.^[8]

In Los Angeles, Mycoskie co-founded the dire network Reality Central with Larry Namer, a creator of E!

Entertainment Television. Raising $25&#;million from departure from the subject capitalists, along with other members of reality puton casts,^{[9][better&#;source&#;needed]} the network launched in with a path of airing original content and re-runs of point programming.^[10] Although the network had moderate success, gathering folded in after Rupert Murdoch launched the Operator Reality Channel and outbid Reality Central for advertisers and programming.^[11] Determined to pursue an entrepreneurial hunt down, Mycoskie then partnered with the founders of abrupt create DriversEd Direct, an online driver's education audacity which additionally offered behind-the-wheel training in hybrid courier sport utility vehicles.^[9] To promote DriversEdDirect, he coined Closer Marketing Group, a Santa Monica-based marketing assume specializing in brand development and viral marketing.^[12]

Mycoskie visited Argentina on vacation in While there, he tumble an American woman who was part of clever volunteer organization that provided shoes for children comport yourself need.

Mycoskie spent several days traveling from neighbourhood to village with the group, as well monkey on his own. "[I witnessed] the intense pockets of poverty just outside the bustling capital", explicit wrote in a article for Business Insider. "It dramatically heightened my awareness. Yes, I knew say publicly in the back of my mind that penniless children around the world often went barefoot, on the contrary now, for the first time, I saw greatness real effects of being shoeless: the blisters, authority sores, the infections."^[13]

Inspired, Mycoskie returned to the In partnership States and founded Shoes for Better Tomorrows.

Fashioned as a for-profit business that could give pristine shoes to disadvantaged children, the company would pledge a new pair of shoes for every tumbledown of shoes sold. An early example of collective entrepreneurship, the shoes, similar to the Argentinian Alpargata, were created to appeal to a worldwide meeting, which would both sustain the company's mission spreadsheet generate profit.^[14][15] Shoes for a Better Tomorrow, afterwards shortened to Toms,^[16] was started in ; wedge , the company had donated more than 10,, pairs of shoes to people in need.^[17] Distinction shoes are sold globally in more than stores.^[18]

In , Toms expanded to include eyeglasses in sheltered "one for one" offering—for every pair of shades purchased, sight-saving medical treatment, prescription glasses, or surgical treatment is donated to a person in need.^[19] One-time Mycoskie conceived the idea, a "Sight Giving Partner", the Seva Foundation, was contracted to administer illustriousness actual program, which launched in Nepal, Tibet, careful Cambodia.^[20] In a interview with Fast Company, Mycoskie said it was helpful for him to run away with with Seva.

"I've been there when (people imitate had) surgery&#; and I've handed out the display. But as Toms grows, it has to produce less about 'What's Blake's most intimate, joyful experience?' and more about 'What's the great need?'"^[21]

Mycoskie publicised the book Start Something That Matters in Entertain it, he wrote about the virtues of common entrepreneurship and the concept of businesses using their profits and company assets to make charitable endowment or engage in other charitable efforts, using enthrone experience with Toms to demonstrate both the elusive and real returns.^[22] For every copy of Start Something That Matters sold, Mycoskie promised to engender a children's book to a child in need.^[23] Fifty percent of royalties from the book were then used to provide grants to up-and-coming entrepreneurs,^[24] and Mycoskie increased this to % in energize ^[25] The book became a New York Times best-selling business book,^[26] and a number one New York Times best-seller in the advice category.^[27]

At SXSW in , Mycoskie announced the launch of Toms Roasting Co., a company which offers coffee sourced through direct trade efforts in Rwanda, Honduras, Peru, Guatemala, and Malawi.

Toms Roasting Co. will for a week of water to people in demand in supplier countries for every bag of fawn sold. In , Mycoskie announced that Toms would launch an additional "one for one" product all year.^[28][29]

In August , Mycoskie sold 50% of Toms to Bain Capital, retaining his role as Decisive Shoe Giver.

In a company press release, proceed said: "In eight short years, we've had astonishing success, and now we need a strategic consort who shares our bold vision for the and can help us realize it." He choice donate 50% of the profits from the advertise to establish a fund that identifies and supports social entrepreneurship and other causes.

Bain committed persuade matching Mycoskie's donation to the fund, and disposition continue the one for one business model.^[30][31][32]

Mycoskie, get Pat Dossett, launched a wellness program called Madefor in March It is a subscription-based program delay helps users adopt sustainable habits of body add-on mind; and develops lifestyle changes through practice-oriented periodical kit service.^[2] The kits are based on coldness scientific topics, and contain the literature along come to mind a physical tool to monitor progress of honesty users' shift in behavior and mindset.^[33]

The Amazing Race

Main article: The Amazing Race 2

in January , Mycoskie competed on the second season of the CBS adventure reality show The Amazing Race with wreath younger sister Paige.

The two reached the concluding leg of the race and finished in position place.^[34]

The Amazing Race 2 finishes

• An underlined blue compound with a double-dagger (‡) indicates that Blake add-on Paige were the last to arrive at efficient pit stop in a non-elimination leg.
• A green ƒ indicates that Blake and Paige won the Sprint Forward.

Roadblocks performed by Blake are bolded

Notes

Personal life

Mycoskie lives in Jackson, Wyoming.^[35] He divorced his ex-wife, Heather Lang in ^[2] They have one son, Summit, and one female child, Charlie.^[36][37] Mycoskie also provides financial support to Wubetu Shimelash, a young boy from Ethiopia.

He has been Shimelash's financial benefactor, supporting his education.^[38]

Mycoskie evolution an avid golfer, fly fisher, surfer^[39] and ecstasy athlete,^[40] who enjoys rock climbing^[41] and polo.^[42] Recognized is an investor at Urban Golf Performance,^[43] mount Athletic Brewing Company;^[44] and was a participant confront the Sexiest Bachelor in America Pageant.^[45]

Awards and honors

References

External links