IKEA Turns Shoppers into Potential Adopters

Home for Hope is a collective project with IKEA and other furniture stores that aims to provide much needed exposure for homeless pets.

They are working with Singapore’s Save Our Street Dogs (SOSD) and Animal Lovers League (ALL).

Lifelike cardboard cutouts of homeless pets were created and placed in selected IKEA showrooms in Singapore. The dogs are not models - they are actual homeless dogs from the shelters. The cutouts are placed in the living rooms, kitchens and bedrooms of the showrooms.

Shoppers are turned into potential adopters by simply scanning the unique QR coded tags on any of the cardboard pets. From there the potential adopters are taken to the website where they can find details on each homeless animal, read about the benefits of adoption and the responsibilities involved.

Kua Yiwen, SOSD Shelter Officer, explains that even though they have 30,000 Facebook 'friends' they are nearly all dog owners already and not actually able to adopt another dog. It is clear that wider exposure is needed.

The Home for Hope project hopes to open more hearts and minds to the idea of adoption.

Sandra Keasberry of IKEA says "It is a refreshing and unique way to encourage Singaporeans to adopt homeless dogs."

By Jenny Prevel