The Mineko Club describes itself as a volunteer group of local residents in Hitachi City, Japan, and their cause of choice is “revivifying the Makine Zoo” by running events and, among other things, selling “animal-themed” products and souvenirs. To most people, that probably sounds like t-shirts with cartoon bears on them or stuffed animals, but this group recently decided to get a little more fashion-forward with its fundraising ideas. Specifically, the Mineko Group is letting the zoo’s lions, tigers and bears design some new jeans, known as Zoo Jeans.
In an online auction that began yesterday and lasts through next Monday, the Mineko Club is auctioning off three exclusive and custom pairs of jeans that were shredded by the teeth and claws of nature’s greatest killing machines. The pair designed by tigers, or the T1, already has 15 bids on it, and the price tag is approximately $1,191 right now, but the bears- and lions-designed jeans (B1 and L1, respectively) are still waiting on their first bids, with a starting price of about $492.
I don’t want to tell the Mineko Club or zoo how to do their jobs, but adding sad music to videos of animals almost always makes me throw my wallet at the TV. Maybe it’ll help here, too.