How Chief Brand Officer Amy Smith is Impacting Mental Health at TOMS
In this episode of Women in Retail Talks, Women in Retail Leadership Circle Managing Editor Marie Albiges interviews Amy Smith, chief brand and impact officer at TOMS, a Certified B Corp global footwear and lifestyle brand with a mission to improve lives. Listen in as Smith shares her eclectic career background that landed her at TOMS (1:15), how the brand makes an impact in communities (3:35), and consumer expectations for purpose-driven companies (6:45). She discusses TOMS expansion beyond its original one-for-one giving model (9:10), messaging the pivot to supporting mental health organizations (13:50), and her and her family’s mental health non-negotiables (16:20).
In addition, Smith shares how TOMS prioritizes its employees’ mental wellness (18:55), fostering team trust in the process (21:30), as well as the five environmental sustainability commitments the company is targeting through 2025 (23:30). Lastly, she touches on the brand’s partnership with resale platform ThredUp (27:05) and what’s next for impact at TOMS (28:35).
Amy Smith is the chief brand and impact officer at TOMS. She serves as a member of TOMS executive team, leading all aspects of the company’s corporate strategy, marketing, consumer insights, creative, impact, and the TOMS.com business. Amy drives global strategy across product, marketing, sales, support functions and social impact with the goal of growing TOMS business and impact; streamlining process; building collaboration across teams; and creating a strong, productive, passionate culture. In her impact role, Amy takes a 360-degree view of impact focusing on all the ways TOMS gives back through purpose, planet and people. In 2021, under Amy’s leadership, TOMS evolved its impact model from One for One to giving one-third of its profits for grassroots good with a focus on mental health, specifically helping fund access to mental health resources to the millions of people who need them. In this role, she ensures the highest quality impact through deep global partner development, powerful storytelling, and transparent reporting. She also manages TOMS’ environmental sustainability efforts, B Corp certification, and employee engagement.
Prior to TOMS, Amy was the chief strategy officer and president of Action Networks for Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service. Amy has also held several management positions at Apple helping to lead its retail initiative and was part of the original team that opened the first 50 Apple retail stores, supporting international real estate development, store design, construction and store operations. Amy is a founding member of Chief LA, has served on several nonprofit boards, holds a BA in Business from Michigan State University, and resides in Los Angeles with her spouse and two children.
Date: September 13, 2024
Credits: Amy Smith
Duration: 30:31
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