Innovation - a blow of fresh air!

We've seen and played with the vacuum cleaners, marvelled at the hand dryers, shed a tear that the washing machines didnt quite work out! But now, as the prospect of a warm summer approaches (yes i know that means it will be cold and wet!) there's a new toy in town. If you didn't get the memo, then you'll have that wonderful experience of seeing something for the first time - something I have grown to love and live for. Introducing.....the bladless fan - yes we all remember daring a naive younger sibling to try and stop the fan with their finger, and after realising they were stupid enough to listen, the panic that followed and intervention that prevented a speedy visit to A&E! This is the future of temperature control for us poor folk that can't afford an air con system - and has a certain futurist sleekness about it. The geeks amongst us may be wondering how it all works:

"Air is accelerated through an annular aperture, which creates a jet of air that passes over an airfoil ramp channelling its direction. Surrounding air is drawn into the airflow, amplifying it 15 times."

I'd like to say, "huh that makes sense" - I can't, so I'm happy to simply admit that these are simply innovation at its best. Its not a dare of fingers anymore, we've moved on to heads!

TOMS

Hang on a minute - what is TOMS? No, its not a nasty Brit owned bar, situated on the beach front of Ibiza, TOMS is something really special! In todays world of materialism where we have a different pair of shoes for every occasion, and some of us every outfit - we often forget just how lucky we are. What if we could feed that hunger to buy a new pair of shoes, and feel like we were making a difference at the same time? Surely its not possible, because deep down we know we are only lining the pockets of multinational corporations that have taken advantage of cheap labour, yes check the label of any recent purchase - Made in China, what isn't these days??

Well it is possible to buy a selfless pair of shoes. With every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. One for One. Now its not unusual for brands to team up with charities, with the promise of donating a certain percentage to the charity - but we often have no idea where that money goes, yet alone who it helps. TOMS on the other hand gives customers the wonderful opportunity to become benefactors, knowing that your purchase will bring such a warm smile to a child in need. So far 600,000 pairs have been given to children, including this wonderful group:



TOMS can be purchased here in the UK from both the Schuh and Office retailers, go on you know you want to!