Soles4Souls is a Nashville-based charity that collects shoes from the warehouses of footwear companies and runs shoe drives to collect donations from communities across the United States. The charity distributes these shoes free of charge to people in need, regardless of race, religion, class, or any other criteria. Since 2005, Soles4Souls has distributed over 15 million pairs of shoes, currently donating one pair every 7 seconds. The shoes have been distributed to people in over 127 countries, including Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

, Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, Nepal

Nepal

Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...

, Haiti

Haiti

Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.
Soles4Souls has been featured in Runner's World

Runner's World

Runner's World is a globally circulated monthly magazine for runners of all skills sets, published by Rodale Press in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, in the United States...

, Ladies’ Home Journal, National Geographic’s The Green Guide

The Green Guide

The Green Guide was a bi-monthly publication produced by the National Geographic Society as an information resource on eco-conscious and healthy living. Founded in 1994, it ceased publication in 2009, and now exists as a website only....

, and The New York Times.
The organization has appeared on CBS, ABC, NBC, FOX, BBC, and thousands of regional news outlets across North America. Soles4Souls is a 501(c)(3) recognized by the IRS and donating parties are eligible for tax advantages.

Celebrity involvement

Notable celebrities that have worked with Soles4Souls include Jessica Alba

Jessica Alba

Jessica Marie Alba is an American television and film actress. She began her television and movie appearances at age 13 in Camp Nowhere and The Secret World of Alex Mack . Alba rose to prominence as the lead actress in the television series Dark Angel...

, Kelly Pickler,
Sarah Jessica Parker

Sarah Jessica Parker

Sarah Jessica Parker is an American film, television, and theater actress and producer.She is best known for her leading role as Carrie Bradshaw on the HBO television series Sex and the City , for which she won four Golden Globe Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Emmy Awards...

, Sir Elton John, the Kardashian sisters, Jessica Simpson

Jessica Simpson

Jessica Ann Simpson is an American recording artist, actress, television personality, and fashion designer whose rise to fame began in 1999. Since that time, Simpson has achieved many recording milestones, starred in several television shows, movies, and commercials, launched a line of hair and...

, Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake

Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...

, John Krasinski

John Krasinski

John Burke Krasinski is an American actor, film director, and writer. He is most widely known for playing Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom The Office...

, Michelle Pfeiffer

Michelle Pfeiffer

Michelle Marie Pfeiffer is an American actress. She made her film debut in 1980 in The Hollywood Knights, but first garnered mainstream attention with her performance in Brian De Palma's Scarface . Pfeiffer has won numerous awards for her work...

, Mariska Hargitay

Mariska Hargitay

Mariska Hargitay is an American actress, best known for her role as New York City sex crimes Detective Olivia Benson on the NBC television drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a role that has earned her multiple awards and nominations, including an Emmy and Golden Globe.The daughter of actress...

, Yoko Ono

Yoko Ono

is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...

, and the TODAY show cast.
Soles4Souls set up a celebrity shoe auction that ran from June 1st to June 22nd, 2011, auctioning off shoes from the SNL cast, Spike Lee

Spike Lee

Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks, has produced over 35 films since 1983....

, game shoes from Lamar Odom

Lamar Odom

Lamar Joseph Odom is an American professional basketball forward with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association.-Early life:...

 and signed game cleats from Derek Jeter

Derek Jeter

Derek Sanderson Jeter is an American baseball shortstop who has played 17 years in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. A twelve-time All-Star and five-time World Series champion, Jeter's clubhouse presence, on-field leadership, hitting ability, and baserunning have made him a central...

, Alex Rodriguez

Alex Rodriguez

Alexander Emmanuel "Alex" Rodriguez is an American professional baseball third baseman with the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball. Known popularly by his nickname A-Rod, he previously played shortstop for the Seattle Mariners and the Texas Rangers.Rodriguez is considered one of the best...

, C.C. Sabathia

C.C. Sabathia

Carsten Charles "CC" Sabathia is an American professional baseball pitcher with the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball...

, Joe Girardi

Joe Girardi

Joseph Elliott Girardi is a former Major League Baseball catcher and current manager of the New York Yankees. During a 15-year playing career, he played from 1989–2003 for the Chicago Cubs, the Colorado Rockies, the New York Yankees, and St. Louis Cardinals...

, and Robinson Cano

Robinson Canó

Robinson José Canó Mercedes is a Dominican baseball player who currently plays as a second baseman for the New York Yankees.-Family and early life:...

.

In 2009, country music artist Adam Gregory

Adam Gregory

Adam Gregory is a country music singer and actor. Active since 2000, he has recorded three studio albums, including 2000's The Way I'm Made and 2002's Workin' On It, both on Epic Records, as well as a self-titled album in 2006 on Mensa Records...

 completed a successful six-week tour partnership with Soles4Souls, "What It Takes 2009", resulting in thousands of dollars of donations and used shoes.

Kenneth Cole-Soles4Souls Community Wellness Center

The Kenneth Cole

Kenneth Cole

Kenneth Cole may refer to:*Kenneth Cole , American clothing designer** Kenneth Cole Productions, American fashion house founded by the designer...

 Foundation partnered with Soles4Souls in 2010 on a nationwide shoe drive and launch of a retail program to raise money for the construction of a community wellness center in Haiti. The program, which ran from August 3 to September 16, encouraged customers to bring in their new or gently worn shoes, and donate funds to support the building of the Center. Customers could choose to donate $10 at checkout when buying online, or donate directly via the Kenneth Cole website to support the construction of the Kenneth Cole-Soles4Souls sustained Community Wellness Center for children and adults in earthquake-torn Haiti. The community wellness center planned to include a recreation area, classes for HIV

HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...

 and AIDS

AIDS

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...

 awareness and prevention, along with education and treatment for Hookworm, one of the most common diseases affecting children and adults in Haiti
Michael Franti

Michael Franti

Michael Franti is an American poet, musician, and composer. He is the creator and lead vocalist of Michael Franti & Spearhead, a band that blends hip hop with a variety of other styles including funk, reggae, jazz, folk, and rock...

 was heavily involved in the efforts, named an ambassador for Soles4Souls in 2010. Franti put on a "Barefoot Concert Series" for the organization, collecting donations at each concert.

Micro-enterprise

Soles4Souls manages a micro-enterprise operation in Haiti

Haiti

Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...

, contracting with established micro-enterprise distributors to transport and distribute used shoes to Central America

Central America

Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...

, South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

, and Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

. Once in the country, the distributors’ networks of micro-enterprise business operators receive inventories of shoes to sell. In many cases, the operators receive the shoes on credit and only have to pay for the shoes if they sell them. Shoes are in high demand for micro-enterprise because they are universally needed and valued, can be easily bartered for other goods, and are a tangible commodity

Commodity

In economics, a commodity is the generic term for any marketable item produced to satisfy wants or needs. Economic commodities comprise goods and services....

 that is easy to transport and sell.

National Barefoot Week

Soles4Souls set up a national holiday for their cause called "National Barefoot Week" that occurs on the first week of June each year. During this week, the Soles4Souls organization encourages participation and activism regarding the issue of access to basic necessities like shoes. They encourage people to go barefoot and tell others about the experience, get together with their local communities to run a shoe drive, and raise awareness on social media outlets by changing their profile pictures to bare feet. Soles4Souls also selects cities in the United States to distribute thousands of pairs of shoes to during this week.

Partner organizations

Soles4Souls has teamed up with many other companies and organizations including the skateboarding company DC Shoe Company,
Miss Me Jeans, Blac Label Premium, Artisans, New Balance

New Balance

New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. , best known as simply New Balance, is a footwear manufacturer based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America. It was founded in 1906 as the New Balance Arch Support Company...

, Converse

Converse

Converse is an American shoe company that has been making shoes, lifestyle fashion and athletic apparel since the early 20th century. Converse is one of the earliest pioneers in the sneaker and sporting good industry founded in 1908.- 1908–1941: Early days :...

, and American Apparel

American Apparel

American Apparel is a clothing manufacturer in the United States. It is a vertically integrated clothing manufacturer, wholesaler, and retailer that also performs its own design, advertising, and marketing...

,
who donated more than 5,000 pairs of socks in 2010 for relief efforts after the earthquake that devastated Haiti.
The organization also partners with flipflop wines to create the "Soles4Souls flippin' good deeds Challenge” which challenges bloggers to lead shoe drives and encourage their communities to donate gently worn footwear. In return, bloggers have the chance to win a trip for two on an international shoe distribution trip with Soles4Souls, where they can deliver the shoes they have collected in-person to those in need.
In 2007, Holeys

Holeys

Holeys is a privately held Canadian company that manufactures and distributes injection foam molded footwear and other lifestyle products made from ethylene-vinyl acetate, a technically advanced, closed cell polymer. Holeys was named the #1 Fastest Growing Company in Canada by the Profit Hot 50...

 (formerly Holey Soles) partnered with Soles4Souls to provide 100,000 pairs of shoes worldwide to people in need; the largest donation in the history of the organization to-date.

In November and December of 2010, the alarm system company NorthStar Alarm

NorthStar Alarm

NorthStar Alarm, or NorthStar Alarm Services, LLC, is a Utah-based home security provider that was founded in 2000. NorthStar Alarm is an authorized Honeywell Security Products Dealer, headquartered in Orem, Utah, and services homeowners and residents in 20 states throughout the U.S...

 ran a holiday shoe drive to help the Soles4Souls organization.

The Rome Braves

Rome Braves

The Rome Braves are a Class-A minor league affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. In 2003, the team, previously known as the Macon Braves, moved from Macon, Georgia, to Rome, Georgia, 60 miles northwest of Atlanta....

 held a shoe drive to benefit Sole4Souls, collecting shoes at the State Mutual Stadium

State Mutual Stadium

State Mutual Stadium has been the home of the Rome Braves of the South Atlantic League since its completion in 2003. It seats 5,105 people. The playing field dimensions are a mirror of the parent club's Turner Field, which is a mere away. The naming rights were sold to Rome-based State Mutual...

August 1-13, 2011. For each pair of shoes donated, the Rome Braves gave a free general admission ticket voucher for the final homestand of the season, held August 22-30.