Sportspower and Priceline Pharmacy have donated to Alan Thorpe's trek to Adelaide

Mr Thorpe has pledged to walk 600km to raise awareness for men's mental health, but blisters, bruising, and muscle aches had plagued the walk.

Inspired by his actions, Horsham businesses Sportspower and Priceline Pharmacy decided to help him out.

"My shoes were beaten up, the pain (between my toes) was so much I was ready to drop off the side of the road," he said.

"The throbbing was so bad at night I couldn't sleep. (The shoes I had) were meant to last twelve days, but I'm going through them in two."

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Sportspower donated two pairs of shoes, new socks and no-tie shoelaces, while Priceline supplied Mr Thorpe with what he needed to care for his feet and stay hydrated along his walk.

Sportspower manager Sam Rintoule said the choice to help Mr Thorpe was easy.

"Mental health, especially among men, is a serious issue not just locally, but globally," Mr Rintoule said.

"There's not enough recognition for that, so when you have local businesses that can get behind humans doing everyday things and doing special things. It highlights the importance of mental health.

"It affects so many of us, it's great to see people like this doing extraordinary things and taking it upon themselves to lead by example and try to reduce them the stigma of mental health in society."

"It's a no brainer to jump on board; a small gesture like this goes a long way to making a difference and the voice gets louder; suddenly people have to listen."

"(Mr Thorpe) is not only being heard, but he's being seen, everywhere from here to Ballarat."

Mr Rintoule said he identified with Mr Thorpe's message.

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"I've had my father and my cousin both commit suicide when I was a lot younger," Mr Rintoule said.

"It changes everything; it affects your family, it affects your friendship group, your work, it affects your sport."

"Having a support network behind you that can help you through those times is really important... it's really easy to go back into your shell and pretend it's not happening, but the reality is it has."

"The more you bottle it up, the more you expose yourself to risk. "

"What got me through everything was that I had those avenues to talk to, and what this gentleman is doing makes you feel that if you are going through something, there is someone to talk to."

Priceline Pharmacy owner Cobie McQueen said she jumped at the chance to help Mr Thorpe.

"Raising awareness for mental health is such an important thing," Ms McQueen said.

"It's not spoken about enough, there's still a stigma attached to it, but mental health is no different from physical health and needs to be treated exactly the same way.

"It's such a good cause that he's walking for and raising awareness for a really important issue."

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