“To date we’ve been able to help rescue 214 pets,” explains Christian Marcello (ChemE 1T7+PEY), founder of Team Plover, a social enterprise that is striving to help every pet find a loving home. Team Plover makes and sells dog collars and leashes and uses the proceeds to relocate unwanted animals that might otherwise be put down.
Christian originally got the idea for Team Plover while volunteering to bring rescue animals from Montreal to Toronto while he was a student at U of T. Christian would borrow his mother’s minivan to transport the abandoned animals part of the way, and was paying for gas out of his own pocket. “I absolutely loved it, but it was a really expensive way to volunteer.” That’s when he came up with the idea of selling collars and leashes to help pay for his expenses. He brought the idea to a market day at Evergreen Brickworks, and the response he received was promising. “I ended up walking away from that event with a number of preorders; to me, that was validation that I had something that might work.”
From those humble origins, Team Plover is now able to accomplish much more than Christian ever could on his own. “I’m most proud of being able to build awareness and open the eyes of countless individuals, inspiring them to be a part of the solution, whether it be through volunteering, pledging to adopt their next pet, or donating to a local rescue.”
Team Plover recently took part in the annual One of A Kind craft show at Exhibition Place where they were featured in a profile by the Toronto Star on socially conscious artisans looking to make a difference: https://www.thestar.com/life/2019/11/14/5-makers-making-a-difference-at-the-one-of-a-kind-show.html
Click to learn more about the great work that Team Plover is doing to save animals.