A Mile in My Shoes is a shoe shop where visitors are invited to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes – literally. Housed in a giant shoebox, this roaming exhibit holds a diverse collection of shoes and audio stories that explore our shared humanity. From a Syrian refugee to a sex worker, a war veteran to a neurosurgeon, visitors are invited to walk a mile in the shoes of a stranger while listening to their story. The stories cover different aspects of life, from loss and grief to hope and love and take the visitor on an empathetic as well as a physical journey.
A Mile in My Shoes
Just walk a mile in his moccasins before you abuse, criticise and accuse.
— MARY T. LATHRAP, JUDGE SOFTLY
THOUGHTS FROM VISITORS
“A Mile in My Shoes is like a rolling stone, collecting stories wherever it goes.”
– The Guardian
“A tiny, human gesture that finds real depth in simplicity.”
“The simplest and most perfect of one-to-one dramatic experiences.”
– THE HERALD
COLLECTING STORIES
We try to collect new stories and shoes in every place we exhibit. We currently have more than 350 stories, in 9 languages, collected across 14 countries. Sometimes we work with a local organisation to create a whole collection around a certain theme or place – for example stories by the people of Denver, or Milan, or Melbourne, or on the topic of healthcare, or water, or home.
If you’re thinking about bringing A Mile in My Shoes to your location, you might find we already have some stories that fit your idea (and we can also mix-n-match across collections to bring together stories around a new theme). And of course we’re always happy to discuss collecting new ones…