Ethical canine fashion finds a home at Gone to the Dogs in Park Slope
NEW YORK - When Jenn Wong and Santos Agustin first met working in fashion, they bonded right away.
They connected over shared interest in the ethics and sustainability of their industry. Coincidentally, both brought home rescue dogs, Ollie and Miles, around the same time.
The foundation for their friendship soon sparked an idea: a business that would combine slow fashion with their love of dogs.
"In 2018, we finally were like, 'Let's do this. Let's do everything that we believe in. Let's make the things that we love,'" Santos said.
They named their new venture Gone to the Dogs.
At their Park Slope storefront, they sell their designs, including sweaters hand-knitted and hand-crocheted in Peru.
"We like to be like, 'Okay, what do I want to wear as a sweater, and what does it look like on a dog?'" Santos said.
To bring their ideas to life, Jenn and Santos rely on fair trade practices, partnering with women artisans and women-led groups using renewable, reclaimed, or recyclable materials.
"That's what makes us even more passionate about what we're doing. It's not just dressing really cute dogs in really cute outfits. It's doing it in a way where we can get up every morning and respect ourselves," Santos said.
Everything at the shop is handmade, including woolen chew toys shaped like smiling dumplings and ice cream cones.
Jenn and Santos partner with local climbing gyms to intercept discarded rope on its way to becoming landfill.
"We wash and clean all the rope, and we make them into collars and leashes," Jenn said.
Their favorite part of the job is the chance to spend time with canine visitors. For them, dogs offer something irreplaceable.
"Unconditional love—that's what a dog brings, unconditional love," Santos said.
Gone to the Dogs
103 7th Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11215
https://gonetothedogs.co/
