Platshon brothers help endangered species selling “clothing with a cause”

Games have always been a big part of Scott (left) and Kevin Platshon’s family life. So big that the two Menlo Park natives – both who grew up here and graduated from Menlo School – would often make themed t-shirts for their intra-family competitions. One day they thought, “Why not make t-shirts for a cause?” They choose endangered species as the cause and sold about 50 t-shirts to their friends.

“That’s what got the ball rolling” says Scott, who’s a sophomore at Stanford about the launch of their online, cause-related business Waddlebird two summers ago. Their mission is to protect endangered species and their habitat and help communities around the world build a sustainable relationship with nature. To do this they’ve teamed up with Conservation International, a leader in hotspot conservation. So far they’ve protected about 350 acres selling their “clothing with a cause.”

“It’s something we’re both really passionate about, so we try to find time to squeeze in a couple of hours a day even with our other commitments,” says Scott. (Kevin works at Levi Strauss.)

The brothers hope that the Waddlebird t-shirts will help them develop a strong brand, leading to more donations and acreage protection. “And sometime in the future, we  want to give people the experience of seeing animals in the wild through eco-toursim,” says Scott.

Photo by Chris Gulker