MOM's Takes a Step in the Right Direction

MOM's Organic Market, a grocery retailer in Maryland and Virginia, has reversed their policy requiring that customers don footwear in their stores. We wholeheartedly applaud this decision as a step in the right direction and an example of a business using logic to do the right thing.

In a July 31 blog, "No Shoes, No Shirt, Great Service," MOM's founder Scott Nash stated that one customer's feedback put him "in the fortunate position to learn" about the barefoot lifestyle.

In a letter to Nash, the unnamed customer shared about the experience of being told by an employee to wear shoes. The customer then laid out a well-written argument supporting the barefoot lifestyle. We do not know who this person is, but applaud them as well for standing up for those who prefer to live barefoot.

There is still much work to do, however. Many grocery stores and other retail businesses prohibit barefoot patrons based on dated policies founded on prejudice and ignorance. In fact, many comments to the blog post were highly critical of MOM's decision -- and used equal ignorance in their arguments. The reason The Barefoot Alliance was founded was to advocate on behalf of barefooters throughout the world, and we certainly left a supportive comment.

We encourage all businesses who reject barefoot patrons to read the facts about the barefoot lifestyle on our Website, take a cue from MOM's, and make the right decision to allow barefoot patrons.

If you live in an area nearby a MOM's location and prefer to go barefoot, we encourage you to shop there unshod as a thank you for their consideration and understanding.