From Elizabeth Oreck, Best Friends Animal Society
Hi everyone,
I wanted to send this to you last week, but Found Animals asked me to hold off until their press release (attached here) went out today, so it's been sitting in my drafts folder. But I know that some of you have seen the photo in the window, so I guess the word is partially out.
So for those of you who don't know... I am so thrilled to be able to share the news that Found Animals Foundation will be taking over the space previously occupied by Barkworks to open another location of their adoption pet store (Adopt & Shop) in the Shops at Mission Viejo. We have been speaking with the property manager since last summer about possible humane pet store tenants to replace Barkworks, and we were really hoping that this particular relationship would work out, and I could not be happier that it did. I think they will do really well there. They already have one extremely successful store in Lakewood and are opening another in Culver City. They took possession of the MV location last Friday and only need to do a few minor aesthetic tweaks before they will be ready to open, so they are planning a soft opening in early May and a grand opening in mid-May. They are looking to hire staff and volunteers, so I wanted to put it out to you guys in case you or folks you know might be interested.
*** FYI, the animals will come from OC Animal Care.
If you're not familiar with the store or Found Animals, here is the link: http://www.foundanimals.org/pet-adoption/adopt-shop
Here is the help they are looking for:
Referrals to a local handyman with great prices (or willing to donate) who can help us with some of the repairs and minor changes needed within the store. Folks can contact our District Manager, John Barrett, atj.barrett@foundanimals.org
Getting the word out about open paid positions for store staff. Job descriptions are posted here - http://www.foundanimals.org/get-involved/employment
Recruiting MANY great volunteers to supplement the limited paid staff - info on our volunteer process in general can be found at the following link, days/times for MV orientations are TBD http://www.foundanimals.org/get-involved/volunteer
Developing a media/outreach plan to get the word out that there is a new type of pet store in town - we don't know the local market and need to learn. Folks who want to help with this can contact Teresa in our Marketing Department at t.buyikian@foundanimals.org
This is a sweet ending to your long and dedicated effort to get Barkworks out of Mission Viejo. Thanks again for everything you've done to bring us to this day.
