Purrfect cat rescue ad goes viral; Here’s why Carvana took notice and donated

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - A metro Atlanta cat adoption organization is fielding calls from all over the world thanks to a creative ad campaign they launched on social media. The nonprofit modeled it after the online used-car retailer Carvana, and it instantly went viral.

Pippi’s Place Pet Rescue decided to advertise their rescue cats as cars. For example, a cat named Arlis is described as a 2014 Furrari, or little Stitch as a 2021 Meowdi, and then there is the 2023 Mini-Pooper named Mr. Goodbar.

The nonprofit’s social media and marketing manager, Kayla Delcoure, said she came up with the unique idea while observing her husband shopping online for a new truck.

“I posted it on Reddit and that’s where it blew up. They got 4 million views in like eight hours,” said Kayla Delcoure. “I message to Vicki and I said I don’t know what I did, but we’re kind of going viral.”

Pippi’s Place Pet Rescue, which started a little over two years ago, is a foster-based cat adoption organization in metro Atlanta. It is completely volunteer based.

“It’s almost like matchmaking between pets and people,” said Vicki Grizzard, director of Pippi’s Place Pet Rescue. “We know them very very well. I think that’s helped us be super successful with her placements.”

They usually have about 40 to 50 cats at any given time, that is until they launched their creative Catvana ad campaign. It was an instant success.

“I think the part that people really seem to be responding to is all the cute names that she gave them. The plays on different types of cars,” said Grizzard.

Carvana also took notice. And to both Delcoure and Grizzard’s surprise, the car retailer didn’t ask them to take down their ad. Instead, Carvana presented the nonprofit with a check for $4,000.

“Let’s not do what we think we should do. Let’s connect with them and see what their actual needs are,” said Allison Andrews, Carvana. “Where is aimed to be a force for good in the car buying industry and through the car buying process. That’s just naturally spread through our culture and throughout our team members. So, collectively, we all wanted to do something.”

The money is being put to good use. This time of year is referred to as kitten season, so Pippi’s actively seeking out homes for their many cats and kittens. They’re also looking for foster families. You can learn more about fostering and adoption by visiting their website here.

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