Rants and Raves of Cosmic Opposites: Arm The Animals

As animal lovers we are thrilled to feature a uniquely benevolent Southern California based clothing company called Arm The Animals. Spawned from a place of genuine concern, co-founders, Matt Heinmeyer and Danian Rios have created a company that makes a point to give back by donating profits to local and international animal organizations. The company evolved in memory of Matt’s sister Karen, a renowned animal lover and pet rescue advocate whose untimely death motivated him to do something in her honor.

Matt said, “Her death sent me for a pretty big loop and for about a year I was racking my brain trying to figure out something to do in her memory. I felt like I wanted to do something in her name that would keep her good works going. So one day the term, Arm The Animals, popped into my head. I wasn't sure exactly what it was going to be but I knew it was a great name so I researched the term [and] the URL’s were available so I borrowed Danian’s debit card and registered the domain. After that, I thought if I'm going to have an organization I need to have a logo, so I put together an image of the letters with the gorilla, came up with a couple more designs and it ended up becoming a t-shirt company. Instead of just saying, we've had a tragedy, I'm going to do something in her memory to raise money, we said, let's have a product, let's have a brand, let's try to make something more.”

When asked why it’s so important to their brand to preserve quality of life and to protect animals Matt said, “It’s important because the globe in general is at a crisis level as far as eco systems go; we're about 25-30 years away from having the ocean fished out and potentially collapsing the food chain. There are megafauna, silver back gorillas, elephants and rhinos that are literally disappearing! Our kids are going to grow up without knowing what a white rhino or a silver back is. There is such a battle for resources and expansion across the globe that in 5 years there will be massive consequences. If the ocean actually is fished out and collapses it's going to start a chain reaction that we can't come back from. Our advantage is that while people are browsing Instagram or Facebook, we can put an image in front of them which will generate a response; it’s all about spreading information and putting a stop or reversal into collapsing eco systems.”

Danian has his own reasons for making such important contributions to the preservations of wildlife and says, “I'm bummed out about what we've done as a people. Like Matt said, we're just consuming every resource possible in the world. I wasn't actually aware of how bad the situation was with domesticated animals until I really started researching the problem. I had animals growing up, but I never really knew how bad the situation was with euthanizing animals. Matt was the one that really started teaching and educating me on the atrocities that were taking place. It was pretty much what his sister had taught him. Having compassion and being willing to do something to make a difference is my responsibility. I like the idea of going to work every day and being able to do something that brings awareness or makes a difference in these animal’s lives, it's really fulfilling.”

Arm The Animals has had several successful collaborations with some amazingly talented artists including Tony Koehl, Franz Garcia and Abby Diamond. They most recently partnered with Alias Blake whose War Paint collection is both impressive and fashion forward. Their brilliant designs, revolutionary thinking, and continued generosity has also allowed Arm The Animals to create successful business partnerships with other important animal rescue advocates including Wildlife SOS. Their generous donations even helped facilitate the rescue of Raju, a tortured circus elephant who is now living the remainder of his life free from chains and bondage.

With commitment to their core values Arm The Animals is helping to keep no kill rescue shelters open, save elephants from captivity, as well as preserve and restore the quality of life for a variety of species worldwide. They strive to do everything within their power to create a better quality of living for both domestic and wildlife animals.

October is Pitbull Awareness Month and in order to celebrate they have created several new designs of which 20% of the proceeds will benefit four Pit Bull rescue shelters; Casa Del Toro Animal Rescue, Priceless Pet Rescue, Fresno Bully Rescue and Lilo’s Promise. Information for these Pit Bull rescue centers is available below or on Instagram @armtheanimals.

Matt and Danian are two of the most amazing guys you will ever meet, we can’t express how incredible they truly are. They are generous, sincere and dependable people with a genuine concern for life. Please check out the new 2015 Fall designs at www.armtheanimals.com

Please also check out Arm The Animals on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @armtheanimals

For more information on the ATA collection contributors, please check out the following;

Tony Koehl, a renowned Death Metal artist that has done hundreds of album covers and has also created several designs for Arm the Animals.

http://www.sketchthesoul.com/

Franz Garcia who is primarily a sketch and comic book artists but who has also done some great work with ATA over the past 2 years.

http://franzdg.blogspot.com/

Abby Diamond, an insanely talented artist whom they recently collaborated on the Finch Fight Collection. She is a brilliant and vivid artist who they plan to continue to work with.

http://finchfight.tumblr.com/

Alias Blake, a freelance artist and designer from Melbourne, Australia. With over 15 years of experience working in the fashion and design industry it’s no wonder that her War Paint collection is colorful and amazing.

http://www.aliasblake.com