Anyone who’s adopted from animal shelters truly understands the meaning of rescue. I know that my dog saved me as much as I saved him.
And who knows more about rescuing dogs than a small pizza parlor in upstate New York?
Enter Just Pizza, which sniffed out a clever way to match people with a new, best friend. Shop owner Mary Alloy wanted to help the SPCA place dogs in forever homes. So, she taped flyers of adoptable pets on their pizza boxes. Like Hooch here.
Soon, people started ordering pizzas just to get the shelter dog photo. Turns out that flyers make the best pizza topping. In fact, the dog pics were like Tinder for dog-lovers. Customers swiped left and shared them with friends.
Soon, pets got adopted and business shot up 700%…for all the right reasons.
Some companies spend millions to create a brand, and come up empty. Just Pizza just wanted to save animals. Their selfless agenda struck a nerve that transcended pizza. Now, compassion is their brand.
Here’s my Take. I can’t watch Sarah McLachlan begging us to spare shelter dogs. It’s a noble cause. But making us feel guilty isn’t the answer. These low-tech pizza box flyers get it right by celebrating the joy of rescuing pets. As it should be.
Maybe ‘pizza and pets’ is the next big thing.
What if the SPCA joined with pizza shops across America? Box top flyers would spread the word about adoptable pets in each community and thousands of animals would find new homes.
So, you can order pizza from Domino’s, or choose the shop that saves animals in kill shelters.
