BRAND IDENTITY • PACKAGING • COPYWRITING
As pet-crazy as Kansas City is these days, our history of caring for homeless pets has been a work in progress. In 2011, a devoted group of animal advocates was given oversight of the city animal shelter and KC Pet Project was born. In 2013, KCPP celebrated its first full year of operation with an astounding 90% live release rate. Soon after, a partnership was launched with Petco for in-store adoption centers.
But there was still much more work to be done. The original building was a 14,000 square foot warehouse that had been repurposed as a shelter and was continually needing repair. It was time to take the next step.
In 2017, a bond issue was presented to the citizens of Kansas City that would support local infrastructure projects, including the first dedicated animal shelter in the city. A campaign to support this particular allocation, dubbed “Raise the Woof,” was launched by a group led by Roshann Parris, founder of Parris Communications. This effort was, in part, to fulfill a promise that Roshann had made to community advocate and civic leader Adele Hall to continue Adele’s legacy of advocacy for animals.
That’s when Roshann reached out to Willoughby and we joined the effort, creating the campaign identity, including the mark that would represent the campaign.
Happily, the bond passed with 67% of the vote, and in 2017 work began on a new facility that would become the next generation of animal care, including an on-site veterinary clinic, “fear free” rooms with music and “catios” for feline residents. As construction progressed, we were asked to extend our design from the campaign to the identity for the Kansas City Campus for Animal Care, an organization that includes KC Pet Project, as well as other initiatives.
In addition to the new campus mark, we collaborated with architecture firm HNTB and Grand Construction on the creation of the wayfinding system and environmental graphics. A large floor-to-ceiling interior mural provides a backdrop for all the happy adoptions that KC Pet Project facilitates. Installations, including a wall made of leashes, add a touch of whimsy and fun.
The new KCCAC opened in early 2020 and has quickly become a national model for adoption, foster, education and reunification. We couldn’t be prouder of our work with them and anticipate bringing home new family members of our own very soon.
