ABOUT BUDDY TEASTER

As President and CEO of Soles4Souls, Buddy Teaster blends entrepreneurial vision, C-level leadership skills, and extensive nonprofit experience to lead the largest not-for-profit shoe and apparel social enterprise in the United States. Buddy has guided the organization to distribute more than 103 million pairs of shoes and pieces of clothing to people in 137 countries. Soles4Souls supporting communities through both immediate aid and sustainable micro-enterprise programs.

Buddy chronicled his journey and Soles4Souls’ global economic impact in his book, Shoestrings: How Your Donated Shoes and Clothes Help People Pull Themselves Out of Poverty (2018). His new book, From Tailspin to Tailwind: Leadership Lessons from Turning Crisis Into Clarity, is set to release May 2025. He is widely recognized as a thought leader in social enterprise and philanthropy, having been named a YPO Global Impact Award Finalist and included in Footwear News’ 2019 Power List. Soles4Souls has also been honored as one of The Nonprofit Times’ “Best Nonprofits to Work For” three years in a row.

Before joining Soles4Souls, Buddy served as President/COO of StarKart and the National Association of Local Advertisers, where he first encountered Soles4Souls. He was also Chief Network Officer for Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO), the world’s largest CEO network, serving over 25,000 members in 130 countries. A YPO member since 2010, Buddy has earned multiple honors, including the “Global Impact Fellow” and “Inclusive Business and Community” awards.

Buddy’s expertise in leadership, philanthropy, and social enterprise has made him a sought-after speaker. He has shared his insights with organizations like the Footwear Distributors and Retailers Association, academic institutions including Vanderbilt University, Belmont University, DePaul, and William & Mary, and at forums such as TEDx St. Louis, the Social Enterprise Alliance Summit, and the Alleviating Poverty Through Entrepreneurship Summit.

Buddy earned his BA in Religious Studies and French from Randolph-Macon College and holds an MBA/MA from Southern Methodist University.

An avid endurance athlete, Buddy has completed nearly 70 ultra-marathons, including seventeen 100-mile races, since running his first marathon in 1994. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with his wife, Becca, and has two daughters.