Fashion meets animal welfare at Battersea Power Station this summer as Battersea Dogs & Cats Home hosts its ‘Cost of Cute’ pop-up experience.
Taking place on Wednesday 19 August, the one-day event will offer Londoners the opportunity to browse the charity’s new purposeful fashion initiative – curated by celebrity animal lovers, including Tasha Ghouri, Vicky Pattison, Faye Winter and more.
The Y2K-inspired collection features tees, caps and tote bags emblazoned with slogans such as “Cute but struggling” and “Dump him unethical breeding”, designed to spark conversations about Battersea’s latest animal welfare campaign, ‘Cost of Cute’.
Launched earlier this month, the collection calls out the hidden health consequences linked to breeding dogs and cats with extreme physical features, such as flat faces and bulging eyes – a trend the charity says has been fuelled by social media.
The event will bring this important message to life, inviting people to learn more about growing animal welfare issues and to read stories of real dogs and cats that have been affected by dangerously extreme breeding.
As part of this, visitors will have the opportunity to sign a physical campaign pledge, adding their names alongside hundreds of other supporters to become part of a growing movement that puts the wellbeing of pets over appearance.
Bringing together fashion and awareness raising in a unique and immersive way, the pop-up event will also offer plenty of fun, memorable photo moments with the fashion collection, and there will be items for visitors to take away.
Caroline Jenkins, Head of Campaigns at Battersea, said: “The aim of our new fashion collection is to use a positive trend to disrupt a harmful one and ultimately challenge the way we think about pets, including knowing what can lie beneath the ‘cute’ surface.
“This pop-up event will bring together the creativity and hard work behind the campaign to life, giving visitors the chance to explore the collection, learn more about the hidden impact of extreme breeding, and become part of the movement for healthier pets. We hope people leave feeling inspired to think differently about what makes a pet truly ‘cute’.”
The event will take place from 10:00 until 20:00 and will be located on the Ground Floor in Turbine Hall B.
The collection will be available to order at the event or online until 15 September, with proceeds helping Battersea care for dogs and cats.